Old World Rescue
by StSE
Summary: G1: Bluestreak is in trouble; only two amish teens and their mules can get him outt've it. Later one of them becomes Wheeljack's apprentice. Now there's a conspiracy and Ratchet finds himself mired deep! WJxRatchet, BlueXBumblebee
1. Chapter 1

Old World

**Old World**

_Preface: For those who are not familiar with the Amish culture or Equines, here is a brief list of terms that I will be using, and what they refer to:_

_Community School – public school_

_Englishman – anyone not Amish_

_Hay Barn – huge structure built to store hay_

_Ice Sled – very large heavyduty sled made for hauling tons of ice_

_Team – 2 or more draft horses/mules_

_Collars – Part of the Harness which circles the draft's neck_

_Borium Heeled – type of traction horse shoe_

_Briefly: Amish allow their teenagers to use cell phones, and from the ages of 16 through 21, the teens are allowed to go completely wild. During this period of their life, they can own cars, party and drink. At 21 they decide if they'll join the church, or become 'English'._

_All of my 'human' characters are fictional, so any coincidental match with a real person is completely accidental!_

**Ambush!**

_"We can't shake them!" _Bluestreak yelled in frustration; Barely dodging the laser blast hitting right next to him.

_"We've got to get this to Metroplex!" _Sideswipe responded, referring to the important 'package' he was carrying.

_"Alright, you go on. I'll buy ya some time!" _not waiting for a reply, Bluestreak spun around on the snow-covered, gravel road. Transforming, he returned fire on the coming Seekers.

He tagged one of Thrust's wings, forcing the Seeker down. Then Ramjet came at him, barely missing as the gray Mech threw himself to the side. He managed a shot off at Ramjet even as his side hit the ground. Laser fire hit his exposed back, as Thrust rejoined the fray.

Damaged, but far from helpless, Bluestreak wheeled around and landed a shot straight in the Seeker's cockpit. Thrust somersaulted with the force of the blast. Not having time to gloat at his good shooting, the Autobot heard the ominous sound of afterburners behind him. A huge impact hit his back, and he was flying through the air. He twisted in time to see Ramjet landing to help his comrade, then the expansive cliff blocked his view as he plummeted the 600 feet.

He landed on his helm, and then began rolling uncontrollably down the mountainside. The rocks and trees he hit, doing far more damage than Thrust's lucky shot had. A rumble filled his audios, growing, expanding into a thunderous roar. Then the avalanche he had started, caught up with him.

Ramjet looked down at the settling snow pack. _"He's dead. Let's find the other one." _he told Thrust.

The muffled roar of jet engines faded into the distance, as the sky opened up and a fresh coating of snow began to cover the signs of the battle. The mountains returning to the soft, silent, peace of late winter.

**Rescue..**

Bluestreak couldn't move, the snow packed around him like concrete. His face and one of his doors were barely visible in the fresh snow pack. Running a systems check, he realized that he had no radio, the linkage in his back was severed, and he had a slow power leak. _Well, I've been in worse! _He thought to himself.

Hoping that the Autobots would start searching for him soon, he waited patiently. But as day turned to night, he began to fear that they wouldn't find him. But there was nothing he could do! He was thoroughly stuck!

The full moon glistened across the winter landscape. The snow covered evergreens sparkling like Christmas trees. Bluestreak thought it was a wonderful sight, and if it weren't for the slow energy leak getting to the critical point, he wouldn't be worried.

He heard a strange sound coming towards him. A steady clop-clop, coupled with the jingling of metal and a smooth 'whishing'. As it got closer, Bluestreak thought he could here some human voices. Hope spread through him and he began to yell 'help' as loud as he could.

The clop-clop stopped, and he thought he could here the humans yell back. So he tried to increase his volume, to help them locate him. Then the clop-clop began again, turning straight towards him.

Out of the woods, came the strangest sight the Mech had ever seen! Two huge longeared beasts pulling a strange flat contraption; but standing on that contraption, were two teenaged boys holding thin lines which connected to the animal's heads.

"_Hey, where are you?" _one of them yelled, scanning the snow-covered mountain side.

"_Over here, over here!" _Bluestreak responded.

A flash light was aimed towards him. _"Hey, Amus, I think someone ran off the road and is stuck in their car! Look I see part of it!"_

"_Drift's too deep for the team. We'll have to leave them here." _

The teenagers strapped on their snowshoes and approached 'the car'. As one of them got his hands on the exposed door, Bluestreak said _"No one's trapped but me!" _

The one named Amus, fell over backwards in shock. His friend looking around, trying to figure out who – or what – had said that. Then he spied the helm barely sticking up, running over, he frantically brushed the snow off Bluestreak's face.

"_Amus, it's one of those Transformer things that we saw on English Joe's TV!" _he shouted excitedly.

Amus dusted the snow off himself, and came over. _"Really Daniel? Never thought I'd actually meet one of them!"_

"_Thanks, but I really need your help." _the gray Mech told them.

They looked at each other, confused about why he needed their help. _"Why don't you just radio your buddies? You do have a radio don't ya?" _Amus asked.

"_Well, it broke on the way down here." _

"_Hmmm, so do you want us to try and call someone to pull ya out – after we get to a place with network coverage?" _

Bluestreak sighed, how in the hell was he going to get out, before his power leak drained him completely? _"Well, that would work. Except that I've got a bigger problem right now."_

"_What's that?"_

"_All my fuel is leaking out."_

"_Oh."_

The boys looked at each other. "_I bet if we can dig enough of him out, to wrap the logging chains around.." _Daniel began, as he started to dig near Bluestreak's head.

"_Then we could hook 'ol Jake and Precious to him, and pull him on out!" _Amus finished.

Bluestreak looked at each boy. _"Who?"_

"_Oh, our loggin' team. They can pull anything you hook 'em up to!" _Amus said cheerily, as he started digging on the other side of Bluestreak's head.

"_You do have shoulders or something down here, don't ya?" _Daniel asked, working his way down Bluestreak's neck.

"_Yep. You're almost at them."_

"_They won't rip apart if we try and wrap 'em and pull ya out?" _the other boy asked, making it to that shoulder and trying to dig a small access hole all the way under it, to get the chains around.

"_I don't think they'll be damaged." _Bluestreak answered.

Then Amus trotted back to the sled, the sound of clanging chains filled the mountain valley as the boy began to laboriously drag it back.

"_Ok, I'm done over here." _Daniel said, leaning back and rubbing sweat off his forehead. _"You're a pretty big robot." _he commented to Bluestreak. Then he yelled over to Amus, _"Hey, how much length we got?"_

"_Um, 200 ft. I got the new chain we just bought at the store yesterday!"_

"_Got the big hooks?" _

"_Yep." _

"_Hey, don't go anywhere, I'll be right back!" _Daniel said as he trotted over to help Amus lay out the chain.

Bluestreak chuckled, like he could go anywhere!

**The Big Pull..**

It took a little work, but soon the boys had looped the heavy chain twice under and around each of Bluestreak's shoulders. Amus then trotted down to the 'team' and began to unhitch them from the sled. Looking over at Daniel he asked. _"So just what is this 'team'?"_

"_Oh, those are our Shire Mules. They've pulled every log we've ever hooked 'em to! They're good strong mules!" _

Bluestreak thought he remembered seeing some kind of thing while scoping out the human TV channels, about these animals that humans used to use instead of machines. He didn't really think they still used them, machines were so much more efficient! _"If you don't mind me asking, why don't you just use a truck?"_

The boy grinned at him. _"Guess you've never heard of the Amish before?" _

"_Can't say that I have."_

"_Guess ya have now!" _Daniel cheerily said. _"And anyways, truck'd be useless in these mountains, can't pull as much as a good team and couldn't even get to where we log!" _

he laughed. _"But we've been saving up for a car. We're sixteen, so we get to have fun like the Englishmen do!"_

Bluestreak was debating on asking him what he meant by that, but Amus was bringing the team around and backing them up towards them.

"_I can't bring 'em any closer, they're knee deep as it as!" _Amus told Daniel.

Daniel stretched out the chains. _"They're at the end of the chain, but it should work!"_

Bluestreak felt the chains get a little taunt, as they hooked the eager team's harness to it.

"_Good thing we got the pullin' harness on 'em, not the traces!" _Amus commented, since the team had been hooked to the Ice Sled, they'd used the heavy duty harnesses.

Daniel thought for a moment. _"Remember when they had to pull 'ol Samuel Yoder's wagon outt've a mess like this? They had to rock it back 'n forth to get the pack to loosen."_

Amus nodded his head in agreement. "_Hey-up! Right Jake, Right!" _the team sank down on their haunches, straining against the collars. Swinging right, then sidepassing and swinging left, then back again.

Bluestreak felt himself being jerked side to side, then the sensation of the pack loosening its grasp on him. _"It's loosening!" _he yelled to the boys.

Amus stopped the team, then backed them straight, putting slack in the chains. _"OK, I'm fixin' to ask em to really dig, so brace yourself!"_

"Hey-up! Hey-up!" the team sank down on their haunches again, then sprang forward. The slack giving them enough room to get some forward momentum; then they leaned into their collars with all their might. Heads going down, Hocks straining with effort, barium heeled shoes digging into the frozen ground beneath the snow. Then suddenly, the pack released its grip on Bluestreak and he found himself being dragged, face down, Amus quickly trying to rein-in the team.


	2. Patch Repairs

Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Temporary Repairs.**

Amus quickly got the excited mules to stop and back up again, so that he could unhook them from the logging chains.

Lightly, Daniel jumped on Bluestreak's back and whistled. _"Boy, you're a right mess back here!" _metal was peeled away, linkages torn in half, hydraulics punctured, and fresh energon was seeping over the mess.

Bluestreak tried to turn, but found he couldn't move from chest down. All the hydraulics and linkage that controlled his lower half, was shot. _"Do you see the leak?" _he asked the boy.

Daniel reached in his chassis, fumbled around a bit. Following fuel lines along with his gloved hands. Then he found the ruptured line. _"Think so. Hey, Amus, Do we still have that gross of duct tape we bought for dad's present?" _

Amus nodded. _"I'll go fetch a roll." _then he looked at Bluestreak. _"You're lucky! Daniel's always been good at keepin' the balers and welders runnin', he's real good at patching machinery!" _with that, he trotted down to the sled and brought back a roll of duct tape.

"_Now this ain't going to be the best, but it should patch you up temporarily." _Daniel said, as he used half a roll to seal up the line.

"_You can get up now." _He told Bluestreak as he jumped off his back.

Again, the Autobot tried, but he was too damaged. _"I can't, linkage and hydraulics are all busted!"_

The boys looked at each other. _"Ice Sled could handle his weight." _Amus offered. _"Be easier than dragging himself with his arms."_

"_Think you can make it to the sled?" _Daniel asked him.

Bluestreak nodded, and began dragging himself towards the contraption they called an 'Ice Sled'; while Amus brought the team to it and began to rehitch them. The team shifting nervously as he pulled himself onto the large flat sled. _"Easy, easy mules." _Amus said, calming them.

**White Out**

As the team pulled them through the mountains, Daniel climbed up on his back again, looking at all his exposed circuitry with interest. Drilling Bluestreak with questions about what did what and how it was all connected and controlled.

They topped the next mountain pass, and Amus pulled out his cell phone. It had started beeping the second they hit the area with tower signal. Reading the text messages, he groaned. _"Daniel, big storm's coming in! We don't have time to make it to town."_

Daniel thought for a moment. White out conditions in these mountains was not something to mess with! _"John Leman's old hay barn is close. Should be half-empty this time of year. Don't think he'd mind if we took cover in it!" _

Amus tossed Daniel his phone. _"Your friends will have to wait 'till the blizzard passes; but we could go ahead and call 'em so they know where you are." _he offered.

Bluestreak told him the number, and as Amus guided the team to the large barn, Daniel informed Blaster at Metroplex of what had happened.


	3. Taking Cover

Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**Taking Cover**

The clouds opened up just as the hay barn came into view. In the blink of an eye, they found themselves struggling through sheets of blinding white. The wind roared, causing the sheets of heavy snowflakes to swirl in surreal dances.

Before the snow hit, Jake and Precious had seen the barn, and being the smart mules that they were, they never wavered from where they were going. Their combined sense of self-preservation saving those that they pulled. Straining against the weight of the ice sled, the team worked as one, digging for traction in the rapidly deepening snow. Suddenly, they stopped, their noses touching the side of the barn. The blizzard so thick that the boys couldn't even see it!

Amus and Daniel made their way up the sides of the team. Each keeping a hand along the harness to find their way, reaching the barn side the boys searched for the doors and struggled to open them. Amus then came back to the team and carefully led them in.

After the ice sled had made it all the way in, Amus went over and helped Daniel close the doors to the storm's fury. The interior of the barn became pitch black.

"_Do you know if Leman has any lanterns in here?" _Amus asked Daniel.

Before he could answer, the barn became illuminated in a strange glow. Taken by surprise, the boys turned around. _"Well, the least I could do is give you guys some light!" _Bluestreak laughed, he had propped himself up on his arms and turned his headlights on.

Daniel grinned at Amus. _"Why didn't we think about that? He is a car too!"_

Amus just shrugged. Though he was curious about Bluestreak, he was still a bit unnerved around this alien, but his religion had always taught him to be tolerant, nonjudgmental and helpful to others. He figured that had to include aliens as well.

So with Bluestreak illuminating, the boys unhitched the team and tied them to some beams. Then they threw down a pile of hay to the mules, which began to munch contentedly.

"_If you leave your lights on, are you going to drain down like a car?" _Daniel asked the gray mech.

He nodded. _"Eventually, but it'd take a week or two. Lights don't use much."_

"_Hey Daniel, I found a lantern over here." _Amus exclaimed, looking around the corner in which Leman had his new baler stored.

Daniel jogged over and helped Amus pull the lantern out of the pile. _"Little John's got a cell, why don't you call him and get him to tell his Pa that we're in his barn."_

"_Ok." _

As Amus made a few calls, informing the Leman's of where they were, which was then forwarded through the 'Amish teen cell phone network' to their own families; Daniel was looking thoughtfully at the new baler. After which he trotted over to Bluestreak, jumped on his back, looked at a few things, and then going back to the baler.

Amus's cell phone rang. _"Hey, it's little John. He said that Pa was thankful that God led us to the cover of his barn. And we could use anything we needed." _then he grinned at Daniel. _"He said he's got one of his tool kits next to his old baler on the other side of the barn. Doesn't know if it'll be useful."_

Now Daniel was in sheer ecstasy! He couldn't think of anything better than being stuck inside because of the storm, and having something he'd never worked on, needing repairs. The elders had always told him that God had blessed him with this gift, and the community had encouraged him, with everyone asking for his help with their balers and welders. Even the older teens let him stick his head under their car's hoods and fix things. The English boys and teachers at the community school he attended had even nicknamed him the 'Amish Grease monkey'.

Before he just jumped on in, he figured he'd better ask for permission, this wasn't just some old baler! _"I think I could fix some of those linkages and hydraulics, they match up pretty close with the new baler's" _he asked the gray Mech, hoping that the Autobot would let him.

Bluestreak looked at the teen; the boy had the same hopeful look that often crossed Spike's face. Smiling, he figured that the teen couldn't do any more damage than was already done, so why not? _"Sure, go for it."_

While Daniel happily trotted back and forth from the mech to the new baler, taking parts out, putting parts in, Amus sat down in the front of the sled, popped open one of their remaining beers and looked Bluestreak in the face. _"If ya don't mind me asking a few questions, there's a lot've stuff about ya aliens that our elders been wonderin' about." _

Bluestreak nodded, humans always seemed more curious, than afraid. Answering their questions had always made it easier to live amongst them.

Leaning back, Amus draped his arms around his legs. _"We are taught that God made us and we are to live humble and simple lives to honor him. What about ya?"_

**Theologies  
**

Before Bluestreak could figure out how to answer the rather strange question, he felt Daniel pat him on his back. _"Better warn you, the more Amus drinks, the more into religious debates he'll get. Every party he ends up at becomes a theological discussion."_

Amus grinned, then looked in the box they had carried their party supplies in. _"My brother, considering we've only got three brewskie's left, neither one of us is even going to get a buzz."_

Looking quizzically at Amus, Bluestreak remembered Spike saying something about religious people not drinking alcoholic beverages, Or something to that extent. _"If you don't mind me asking, I thought religious people didn't consume beer?"_

Both boys started laughing. _"Ya, that's what the Englishmen think!" _Amus chuckled.

"_They also think that Amish are some backwoods, backward, technology-fearing, ignorant community." _the other adding, nodding as Amus tossed him a beer.

"_None of which is true."_

"_Yep, even the community of Shipshewana has a website!"_

"_And their cultural center's got all sorts of interactive videos and such."_

"_And no one can party like Amish teens!" _Amus winked.

"_Yep, we can drink those English boys silly." _Daniel agreed, lifting his beer.

Bluestreak turned his head, trying to look at Daniel. _"But then why are you still using mules? And have no electricity in this barn?"_

"_Oh that? We can use technology that doesn't interfere with the family. Chores and stuff are done together" _Daniel shrugged.

"_Yep, at home we have no TVs, Video games, or other stuff. Those are just distractions from family" _

"_But we've got these sheds by the road, where the electricity runs. We keep our cell phones out there."_

"_And if we buy a car, we have to park it away from the house."_

Daniel took another big gulp. _"And unlike the Englishmen's churches, our churches want us to experience life to the fullest, and then decide with an understanding mind – if we want to return and be part of the church, as adults." _

"_To the fullest!" _Amus agreed, lifting his beer in toast.

"_Until twenty-one!" _Daniel laughed.

These boys were confusing Bluestreak more than explaining anything. But he just accepted the fact that humans were a little odd, and these humans were particularly odd. At least they were very friendly and helpful.

Amus leaned forward. _"But ya avoided my first question."_

"_He won't stop until you answer it." _Daniel whispered to him. Finishing his beer, he went back to work on the hydraulics.

"_Well, we don't really have a 'God'. Unless you consider Vector Sigma it." _Bluestreak answered.

Amus nodded. _"So this Vector Sigma is ya creator?"_

"_I guess so, we build new transformers then he animates them."_

"_Oh." _the boy took another swig, deep in thought. _"So he doesn't actually create ya, he puts ya soul in?"_

"_Something like that."_

"_So how did ya first begin? Who made the first one?"_

"_Never thought about it. Don't really know." _the Mech shrugged, and then he felt Daniel fall on his aft section. _"Oops, forgot you were up there."_

"_It's ok; I'm wearing 5 layers, so it didn't hurt." _Daniel answered, getting back on his feet.

Amus popped another beer. _"So if ya don't know who first made ya, no one ever taught ya how to live?"_

"_Guess so." _Bluestreak made sure not to shrug this time.

"_The newspapers say ya are at war. Are ya always at war?" _the teen asked.

"_Pretty much. Ever since I was built."_

Amus considered this, then looked up at the Mech. _"Maybe ya problem is that ya have no religion, no God. So Satan has free rein over ya lives. He loves war and death."_

Bluestreak cocked his head, he'd never really understood the human need for religion, it had always seemed a tad bit illogical to the Transformers. But then again, his species had seemed to always be at war, whereas their species went through cycles of war and peace. Even in the cycles of war, the majority of them were still living in peace. One of these days, he'd have to run this idea past Perceptor.Granted he doubted that they'd ever get the Decepticons to listen to such a crazy theory! A mental picture of Megatron bowing to some human religious symbol passed through his processor, causing him to silently chuckle.

Then Amus patted his arm. _"I'll tell the elders that we need to pray for ya. Maybe our God will show ya the way. Maybe that's why he led us to find ya."_

Realizing there was no sense arguing about the illogical nature of this, Bluestreak just grinned at the boy. _"Thanks, I guess."_

"_All done, I think." _Daniel said, sliding down Bluestreak's shoulder to stand next to Amus. _"See if you can move."_

Slowly, Bluestreak tested his lower half, then rolled over and sat up, stretching his legs a bit. His linkage felt a little tight, and the hydraulics were very stiff, but he could move now. _"You did a pretty good job on me, thanks!" _he nodded to Daniel. Whose eyes lit up in pleasure.

They continued to talk, waiting for the storm to pass. The old barn creaking with effort as it protected the rather strange group.


	4. Conversation wihe Jake

**Forward:** I had this chapter already written, this story wrapped up. Then I had the opportunity to observe a very strange reaction that my actual young 'horse mule' (AKA castrated male mule) had toward our new 'mechanized' 4X4 Mule. This observation caused me to rewrite this chapter.

So yes, this is actually based on true 'horse mule' behavior.

**Passing the Time**

It got late into the next evening, from the texts' that Amus had been receiving, the storm was due to pass in just a few more hours. The boys were tired, so they lay down next to each other, covering themselves with hay to add insulation. Neither one was worried, for the temps had stayed in the twenty degree zone, and they had on more than enough layers to ward off any chance of hyperthermia.

Bluestreak sat silently as the exhausted boys slept, the howling wind and creaking barn filling his audios. Jake interrupted the Mech's thoughts with a low bray, the strange sound making the Mech chuckle.

Looking at the two strange creatures, the Autobot wondered if he could make friends with them, just like he did with humans. The mules seemed gentle enough, for Amus had climbed all over them as he had taken off their harnesses. He knew they weren't nearly as intelligent as humans or Mechs, but getting to know them would sure beat just sitting here bored for the next few hours.

Sliding his bulk to get nearer to them, Bluestreak noticed that the one called 'Jake' was watching him. The mule put his comically-long ears back and swished his tail as the Mech got nearer to the pair. Thinking that this must be communicating an interest in getting to know him, Bluestreak slid even closer.

At this, Jake shook his head. His enormous ears flopping around, then pinned behind his head again. Bluestreak chuckled, thinking the mule just wanted to be funny. He could see why the Amish liked these creatures, for they seemed to be very entertaining. So Bluestreak slid even closer.

Jake brayed again, his tail swishing even harder. Turning, he faced the Mech, throwing his head up and down. Those hysterical long ears just flopping away, as he then stomped his front hooves, kicking out toward Bluestreak like he was trying to kick a ball to the Mech. This just made the Mech's smile get bigger, for this mule must really like him if he was reacting this much! So Bluestreak decided to stretch out his hand, he wanted to touch the mule.

Without warning, Jake spun around and kicked the Mech's chest with both of his hind hooves. A sharp metal clang resonated through the barn as the mule's hooves connected with his armor plating. The powerful force of those metal-clad hooves caused the astonished Mech to be thrown back into the huge stack of hay in the rear of the big barn. His shout of shock, blended in with Jake's challenging brays – causing the two boys to spring up from their slumber in total shock.

The sight of the Mech buried in the hay with his optics wide in shock, with Jake stomping his satisfaction that he'd eliminated the mechanized threat towards his herd mate – caused both boys to begin to roll in hysterical laughter.

Cleaning the hay off himself, Bluestreak sat back up. Keeping a wary optic on Jake, he made sure to slide himself to the opposite side of the barn from the mule. He looked at the two boys in confusion. _"Well, he was stomping and shaking his head at me. I just thought he liked me." _he stammered.

Amus had finally quit laughing, but Bluestreak's explanation got the boy rolling in laughter again.

Finally, the two boys quit laughing, though they were still trying to hold back snickers. _"When a mule is stomping and shaking his head, he's warning something to stay away from his herd." _Daniel began to explain.

"_And if the threat doesn't back down, a horse mule will attack it." _Amus added.

Daniel chuckled again. _"That's why we use them to also protect our livestock. They'll kill any predator that comes near."_

As he figured out that he had totally misread Jake's communication, Bluestreak found himself chuckling. For a stupid animal had managed to take him down with just one kick!


	5. Going to town

Going into Town

**Going into Town**

The blizzard finally stopped its assault on the region, the driving snow slowing down to a moderate downpour of big, soft snowflakes. Amus began to tack up the team, as Daniel tried to get as much hay out of Bluestreak's damaged back as he could.

"_Well, I'll remember never to pet a mule again," _the Mech snickered, thinking he just might talk Sideswipe into trying. He needed to pay that Mech back for some pranks.

Daniel chuckled, _"Yep, now you've got hay in all your linkages that I fixed. It'll take days to get it all out."_

Bluestreak turned his head, eyeing the boy behind him as best he could. _"Ah, 'ol Ratchet will get it all out. No problem!"_

After Amus had hitched up the team, the boys struggled to open the barn's doors. They simply wouldn't budge!

Carefully sliding around the pair of mules, and keeping his optics locked warily on 'ol Jake – Bluestreak offered his help. The boys moved aside, and with his hydraulics whining with effort, the Mech got the doors opened.

"_Wow, that was a lotta' snow!" _Amus whistled, as they all stared at the six foot drift in front of the barn.

Staying on his knees to get through the door, Bluestreak slowly pushed the drift out of the way for the team. _"Boy this stuff is a sloggin' pain to move!" _he griped.

Finally, he'd gotten the six feet in front of the door cleared, and he could stand up. That's when he realized that the hay stuck in his linkages, made it very uncomfortable to stand straight.

Noticing the grimace on the Mech's face, Daniel looked up at him with a questioning glance. _"Ah, I'll be fine," _Bluestreak lied. Walking stooped, he began to follow the boys' sled toward town. Every step was a struggle, with the snow forcing him to step higher than normal, his feet constantly trying to slide out from under him, and his linkages forcing him to walk humped over.

The boys stopped their sled, Bluestreak almost stumbling into it before he realized it. _"We were thinkin'; since a car can't drive through this stuff, and ya'll slippin' an slidin' – perhaps ya should climb back on?" _Amus offered.

Keeping his optics warily on Jake's ass, Bluestreak gratefully slid onto the Ice sled. Sitting down, he grabbed both sides of it with his hands in order to stay balanced. _"Thanks for the offer guys," _he said as he nodded to the teens.

So, the strange group made their way towards the Amish community: two mules, two teens, and one banged up Autobot.

--

Please review..


	6. Payback

Payback

**Payback**

"_Interesting ride you got there, Bluestreak." _Sideswipe yelled cheerily, as he watched the strange spectacle coming towards them.

The Autobots had positioned themselves on the last section of cleared and salted pavement on this end of the town; patiently waiting for their friend to arrive. A rather large crowd of black dressed Amish adults and children had gathered near the Mechs, trying to be polite with their curious stares. Off to the side a group of elders were conversing in quiet tones with Bumblebee and Spike; both sides being equally as interested in learning about the other.

Bluestreak grinned mischievously at the prankster and waved back. Leaning towards Amus he whispered, _"Do you think that we could talk Jake into pegging that red Mech?"_

Amus's eyes got big; Amish just don't do those types of things. But Daniel looked up at Bluestreak and shrugged, _"why?" _he asked, seeing that mischievous look on the Mech's face.

Leaning very close to Daniel, Bluestreak explained some of the notorious pranks which Sideswipe was known for. As he whispered, Daniel's eyes got bigger and bigger, and then a grin crossed the boy's face.

"_Well, we can't make him, but I think Amus and I will need to use the outhouse when we stop – so if you'd be so nice as to hold the reins.." _He tapped the Mech's hand, _"but if they take off, you better steer! Right rein makes them go right, Left rein goes left. Then stick your feet out, pull back a bit and say 'whoa' – it should stop them."_

Bluestreak's grin went from audio-to-audio as he nodded agreement.

Slowing down, they stopped the ice sled on the side of the cleared road. _"I've really got to go; would you hold this for me?" _Daniel said, handing the reins to the Mech.

Amus looked at his friend, still not sure this was a good idea, but it would be the Mech's fault – wouldn't it? _"Hey, I gotta go too," _he said, as he followed Daniel.

So Bluestreak sat smiling on the sled, holding the reins; as his friends walked up. _"You know, I kind've like this form of transportation guys," _he joked as he looked up at them.

Ratchet just shook his head; these younger Mechs always seemed to get the strangest ideas. Going around behind the sitting Mech, he whistled as he saw the extent of damage to Bluestreak's back. _"You're such a mess back here, it may be the only form you'll get for a while;" _he grumbled. _"And is that HAY stuck in your linkages??" _

Bumblebee was still across the way, now having a whole crowd of children wanting to touch him. But Sideswipe was curious about this contraption that Bluestreak was riding on, so he wandered over, his blue optics bright with interest.

"_Hey, think you could give me a ride around town?" _he asked Bluestreak, eyeing the sled to see if there was room.

Sideswipe had managed to walk right up on the side that Jake was; Bluestreak's glee increased substantially. Looking up at the Lamborghini, he shrugged; _"If you make friends with that mule," _he nodded at Jake, who was already starting to stomp and shake his head at the nearness of the red Mech; _"then he might let you ride with me around town. He likes to be petted on his back side."_

The grin got bigger on Sideswipe's face. Innocently he walked by Bluestreak, up towards the horse mule. Bending down, he reached out to pet the mule's back side – suddenly, the sound of metal hitting metal filled the cold air – and Sideswipe was sent sliding across the slick road. A surprised look across his face, as he ended up in a deep snowdrift, a perfect hoof print in the center of his chest armor.

Bluestreak was laughing so hard, he forgot to rein in the team; off they went down the side of the road. The two mules trotting as fast as they could in the thick snow, Jake still not liking the fact he had one of the mechanized threats still behind him. The laughing Mech thought about putting his feet down on either side of the sled and stopping them, but he thought it'd be more fun driving them around the town square – just to dig in the fact that it appeared that Jake liked HIM, not Sideswipe.

So around the square he went, the Amish teens that were gathered, all taking cell pics to email to all their friends – for who would've thought that they'd ever see an alien driving one of their sleds!

--

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	7. Back at the Ark

Fixed back up

**Fixed Back Up**

"_Akkk, this hay is going to drive me into endless glitches!" _Ratchet grumbled. For almost two days straight he'd been picking pieces of hay out of Bluestreak's circuits, and every time he thought he'd finally gotten it all out – he'd find more!

Bluestreak just lay face down on the repair table, so used to the medic's grumbling he didn't even notice it anymore. _"You know, it's really weird how humans think. One group thinks that everything needs to be automated, while another group thinks that it's bad to have automation. Almost like – OUCH!"_

Yet again, Ratchet hit him on his helm with his wrench. It was the only effective way to get the darned Mech to ever shut up! _"Keep it up, and I'll disconnect your voice synthesizer for a while. I owe you that for that stupid stunt you pulled on Sideswipe. Now I have to repair his aft too!"_

Wisely, Bluestreak finally shut up. Well, at least, for a little while.

Ratchet slammed his panels closed. Harder than he really needed to; _"Well, you're finally done. But if I ever catch you playing in the hay with open panels again, I'll…."_

Before he could finish his threat, Bluestreak zipped out the door. Grumbling, the medic called for his least favorite Autobot to come and get repaired. He had considered just leaving the hoofprint in the middle of Sideswipe's chest plate, but he knew it'd drive him haywire to see it every day. So now, yet again, he'd have to repair the darned prankster because of the Mech's own stupidity!

--

"_Hey Wheeljack, you got a second?" _Bluestreak asked, as he poked his head into the inventor's workshop.

Wheeljack looked up, smiling behind his mask. He'd heard about Bluestreak's recent 'adventure' and the payback he'd given Sideswipe. Most of the Autobots, himself included, were still chuckling over that one. _"Sure, what's up?"_

Coming in, the gray Mech plopped himself down on the corner of one of Wheeljack's benches. _"Do you need help in here?"_

Looking at the Mech in curiosity, Wheeljack wondered what he was up to. Bluestreak was one of many Mechs, who avoided the inventor's workshop like the plague; probably for his own safety. _"Why? Are you actually volunteering?"_

"_Well, not exactly. You see, I've got this human friend that seems to have a knack fixing machines."_

"_Why not ask Ratchet then?" _After all, that's the Mech that does most of the repairs; Wheeljack thought.

Bluestreak shrugged, _"He's too darned mean."_

"_Oh, so why me?" _Wheeljack usually ended up blowing stuff up, not fixing it!

"_Cus you're cool and easy to get along with. Figured he could learn a lot from you," _Bluestreak gave him his most imploring look.

Knowing the Mech was brown nosing his aft off, but enjoying it at the same time, Wheeljack figured he give this 'friend' a chance. It'd be nice to have those tiny human hands working on the more intricate circuitry anyways. They could get, where he was just too big to. _"Ok, I'll give him a week trial. If he learns real quick, he can be my apprentice."_

A grin spread from audio-to-audio on the gray Mech's face. _"He won't disappoint you! I'm sure of it!"_

As Bluestreak turned around and headed toward the door, Wheeljack stopped him. _"So what's this guy's name?" _he asked.

"_Oops, forgot. His name's Daniel. See ya in a few!" _and with that, Bluestreak disappeared.

Going back to the new energy transfer module he had been working on, Wheeljack figured that Spike needed a guy to hang out with anyways. So it'd be a good thing all around to take on an apprentice.

--

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	8. A Teen's Dream Job

A Teen's First 'Car'

**A Teen's First 'Car'**

"_What do ya think 'bout this one?" _Amus asked.

Daniel wandered over, lifting the hood of the older Cavalier that Amus was patting. He and his life-long friend had decided to pool their resources and buy a car together. This way, they could get something that wasn't a total wreck.

With his head under the hood, he fumbled around. Swiftly, he checked the state of the oil and radiator fluid. _"Well, it doesn't look burned or anything. Guess we could give it a test drive."_

"_Why are you giving it a 'test drive' when you've already got a 'car'?" _He heard a familiar voice ask.

Banging his head against the hood, Daniel ended up rubbing it as he turned and stared up at the gray Mech. The surprise was etched all over his young face.

"_Wow! Never thought I'd see you again!" _he exclaimed with a smile.

Bluestreak grinned; he always liked how humans seemed to be glad to see him. The Autobots tended to groan and shut off their audio receptors! Transforming, he opened his doors. _"So you boys want to go for a real drive?" _he asked.

Amus and Daniel looked at each other in excitement. Almost falling over each other, they ran and jumped in. Clicking their seatbelts, Daniel hesitantly put his hands on the steering wheel.

"_So am I driving, or are you?" _he asked.

Bluestreak chuckled; he loved how these kids always asked permission for everything. _"I'll drive until we get out of city limits. Then I'll let you."_

"_Really?!" _Daniel's eyes couldn't get much bigger.

"_Really."_

"_Wow, umm, can we take turns? I got my license too!" _Amus asked.

Pulling out of the used car lot, Bluestreak chuckled again. _"Sure, no problem!"_

As they drove out of town, the Mech never once shut up, and his passengers loved every minute of it! So both parties thoroughly enjoyed the 'test drive'.s

--

Coming back into town, Amus nervously gripped the wheel. He'd never even sat in a car this nice – much less driven one! Plus the fact that this wasn't really even a car just blew the youth's mind!

Bluestreak had been debating with Daniel about the different types of road surfaces and how they wore down tires. Noticing Amus's nervousness, he interrupted his own sentence to give the kid a confidence boost. _"Hey, Amus, don't worry. You're doing great!"_

"_I know, it's just I've never driven a car like ya. I don't want to damage ya or anything…" _Amus stammered. His knuckles were white, and his head was hurting from concentrating so hard.

"_Ah, nothin's gonna happen. I'll make sure we don't hit anything."_

Daniel snickered, _"Except the back end of 'ol Jake!"_

This got Amus laughing, and he began to relax.

"_So did ya get in trouble for what ya did to ya buddy?" _Amus asked the Mech.

"_Nah, 'ol Ratchet was a little peeved. But he's always peeved at Sideswipe for something or another."_

"_Ratchet was that ambulance guy, right?" _Daniel asked. He'd caught himself daydreaming that he was that ambulance, and then he'd get to work on all of these aliens!

"_Yep. Hey Daniel, you still going to that diesel school?" _Bluestreak asked.

Daniel shrugged, _"Once I save up enough, Papa said I could go."_

"_What about apprenticing under one of our mechanics?" _the Mech asked.

Amus looked over at Daniel in shock. The aliens wanted Daniel to work for them?!

Daniel's voice was uncharacteristically shaky. _"Are you serious?"_

"_Sure am."_

"_Well, um, guess you'd have to ask my Papa. If he says it's Ok, then I can go anytime." _Daniel's palms were sweating in excitement; he couldn't wait to be Ratchet's apprentice!

"_Ok, just drive us there Amus!" _Bluestreak chuckled. Surely, it'd be easy to talk this kid's dad into letting him apprentice!

"_So I'm going to be Ratchet's apprentice. That's so cool!" _Daniel mumbled to himself.

The sharp audios of the Mech picked his words up. _"Well, no. You don't want to be Ratchet's apprentice, he's mean."_

"_Then who?" _Daniel's face became downcast. He'd really dreamt of being Ratchet.

"_Mech named Wheeljack, he's really cool. And he's always inventing stuff."_

"_He's an inventor? What can I do for him? I don't know anything!" _Daniel was now afraid this would be a fairly short-lived apprenticeship, for he had only basic mechanical knowledge. He was sure the inventor alien would need someone more experienced.

Bluestreak chuckled, _"Maybe you could teach him some common sense while he's teaching you the ropes."_

"_Common sense?" _Amus looked at Daniel in confusion.

"_Ya, you see Wheeljack's always making things way too fast. He doesn't think 'em through. And most times, they end up blowing up." _

Amus gave Daniel his best 'do you really want to do this?' look. But Daniel was still excited that the mechanical aliens wanted to teach him anything! So, yes, if Papa said he could – he'd go!

--

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	9. Meeting of the Elders

Meeting of the Elders

**Meeting of the Elders**

"_This is not a decision that I can make alone. It's very unusual," _the elder Borntragger said as he eyed the strange looking alien.

Rubbing his beard, the elder really didn't know what to think about all of this 'alien apprenticeship' talk. He saw the excited gleam in his younger son's eyes, and knew that the fact that these aliens were all robots was really what his son was interested in. Yes, God had given his boy a gift with machines, so perhaps God wanted him to go apprentice with these aliens; for there was always a higher reason for everything that happened.

"_You are an elder in your family?" _he asked the alien.

Bluestreak looked at him in confusion, _"Elder?"_

"_I mean, you are the head of this family? Who makes the decisions," _Elder Borntragger patiently explained.

"_Um, no, that would be Optimus Prime."_

The older Amish man studied the alien. In the Amish culture, it was proper for only the elders to offer apprenticeships to the sons of other elders. But, perhaps this alien family was run more like English families? Regardless, he knew the other elders would demand that in this highly unusual situation; that they only dealt with elders.

"_I will approach the other elders with this. We will need this Elder Optimus Prime, to attend our meeting so that we can come to a decision." _Elder Borntragger looked sternly at the Mech, his decision firm.

"_So you need Optimus to come and talk with you?"_

"_Yes, that is so."_

Bluestreak shrugged, he figured Prime wouldn't have a problem with Daniel being an apprentice. _"Just have Daniel call us and tell us when and where, we'll be there!" _he said cheerily.

"_It has been nice to meet you," _the Elder said as he nodded to the Mech.

Bluestreak grinned and nodded in return. Transforming, he headed back to Autobot City.

--

"_Aww, come on Prime! I think he could teach Wheeljack a little common sense!" _Bluestreak argued.

Optimus studied the talkative Mech. Knowing fully that Bluestreak wanted the teen here so that he'd have somebody to listen to his endless chatter – more so than the boy actually apprenticing under Wheeljack. _"But we are at war, and this boy's culture is a pacifist one. It may not be wise to thrust him into our conflict."_

"_But he'll just stay in Autobot City; he won't ever be on the front lines. Come on Prime, please……" _the gray Mech was getting his pleading voice going…

The big Mech sighed, for he knew that if he didn't agree, Bluestreak would just end up latching himself to him. Then Prime would have to listen to the Mech's endless chatter as he followed him around. Eventually, he'd give into Bluestreak just to get him to shut up – and the gray Mech knew it!

"_Ok, as long as he's aware of our conflict and knows to stay within Autobot City."_

A big grin crossed Bluestreak's face. _"Ok, now we've got to go meet with the community's Elders."_

"_We?"_

Unperturbed, Bluestreak just motioned for Optimus to follow him. _"Yep. They want to talk with our 'Elder' – and that's you."_

Prime wanted to roll his optics in exasperation, for Bluestreak could be a very manipulative Mech when he wanted to be! Without a word, he followed the gray Mech out of the city.

--

"_Yes, we are in conflict with the Decepticons. Daniel will stay within the safety of Autobot City and will not be involved." _Optimus nodded to the gathered Amish Elders as he assured them of the boy's safety.

The Amish talked quietly amongst themselves.

Brother Yader looked up at the Mech. _"Explain to us why you are in conflict with your brothers."_

Optimus sighed; this discussion was dragging on for hours. So, he went through the lengthy explanation of the Decepticons' greed and want of power – while the peaceful Autobots had been forced into fighting in order to save themselves from extinction.

When he was finished, the Amish conversed amongst themselves again.

"_Will Daniel be learning how to make weapons?" _another Elder asked.

Prime shook his head, _"Wheeljack usually works on improving equipment like power cores, warp gates and such."_

Once again, the Elders talked amongst themselves. Then they seemed to have some kind of vote.

Brother Borntragger nodded at the alien, _"It has been decided that my son may apprentice with your Wheeljack. I entrust his safety to you."_

"_We will ensure his safety during his apprenticeship," _Prime assured them.

As he drove away, Prime knew he could assure the boy's safety from the threat of the Decepticons – but he couldn't assure it in Wheeljack's lab. He just prayed that Wheeljack didn't blow something up too badly..

--

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	10. New Apprentice

New Apprentice

**New Apprentice**

"Hey, Daniel, this is Wheeljack." Bluestreak smiled as he introduced the two.

Daniel looked up with big eyes at the inventor. This alien was even stranger looking than Bluestreak. At least Bluestreak had a kind've human face; this one didn't even seem to have a mouth!

"Um, nice to meet you sir," he stammered.

Wheeljack cocked his head in amusement. He couldn't believe that the strangely dressed boy had actually said 'sir' to him!

"So, Bluestreak told me you were pretty good at figuring out machines."

"Um, yes sir."

"Well, follow me; I got this really cool gizmo I'm working on! You see it's supposed too….." his voice faded into the distance, as he led the boy into his workshop.

Bluestreak smiled as he walked off. He couldn't wait until the end of Daniel's shift, and then he and his friend could go cruising again. He'd found some interesting information concerning a new car model that Dodge was coming out with, and he just couldn't wait to tell Daniel about it. Maybe they'd even drive to a dealership and check it out!

--

"Now this gizmo here I call the 'Energy conversion processor'. It's supposed to convert all types of current into the direct current we need to make energon out of." Wheeljack proudly motioned to his newest contraption.

Now, Daniel knew a little about electrical currents. He had rewired several livestock trailers for local Englishmen back home. And he had also repaired a couple of his friends' cell phones as well. So he listened and nodded, as Wheeljack proudly opened a few of the gizmo's panels and explained everything in great detail.

As the inventor continued to ramble, Daniel found himself tracking the different wires with his eyes. Following the positive and negative currents from their start to end, he frowned as he spotted a wire that appeared to be crossed.

Tapping the inventor's leg, he waited politely until Wheeljack stopped talking and looked down at him.

"Um, sir, are those supposed to be crossed like that?" he asked.

Wheeljack leaned down, spotting the miswiring that Daniel was pointing at. His blue optics got very large! For if he'd done a demonstration run, the gizmo would've shorted out! Smiling behind his mask at the boy, he realized that the kid just saved him from another embarrassing screw up in front of the other Autobots. And boy; was he tired of the 'blowing up' jokes that the other Mechs were always snickering about!

Scratching his helm, Wheeljack nodded to Daniel. "You're right. Guess I was wiring that harness too quick, and accidentally crossed them."

Daniel beamed with happiness that he'd actually helped his teacher!

Wheeljack tapped his fingers along the gizmo's protective plating. If he'd made one mistake, he figured there were more of them in there. And the space was so tight; he'd have a hard time getting his hands in there. But there was plenty of room for the kid to climb right in!

"Think you could climb in there and double check the wiring?" he asked Daniel.

Daniel grinned and nodded his head, "But I don't have any tools to fix it if I find something, sir."

"Oh, I forgot, got something for you over on that shelf." Wheeljack motioned towards a low shelf in the corner.

Going over to it, Daniel's eyes lit up in shock! There were a couple of brand new tool chests, filled with top-of-the-line human tools. He couldn't believe it! They'd bought them just for him!

"Hope they've got everything you'll need. I sent 'ol Sparkplug and Spike to Lowes with my account number," the inventor told him.

Daniel turned around, his eyes big in disbelief! For back home, he'd always gotten used tools at yard sales. Since the Amish were known for their thriftiness.

"Um, yes sir! I, uh, can't believe you bought all this nice stuff just for me!"

Wheeljack nodded, he liked making someone happy. Especially someone who wasn't afraid to hang out in his workshop! "Ah, it ain't nothing; if you're my apprentice, you've got to have good tools!"

Grabbing his new tool belt, Daniel stuffed the tools he would need to work on wiring into it. With a smile, he climbed into the gizmo and began to double check all the wiring.

--

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	11. Making new friends

**Making New Friends**

"Hi, you must be Daniel?" Spike said as he extended his hand.

Taking his hand, Daniel shook it, a big smile on his face. "Yes sir; and you are Spike?"

Spike smiled at the strangely dressed teen. The guy sure did dress like something straight out of a history book! "Yep, but you don't call me sir or anything ok?"

"Um, Ok. Thanks for getting me those tools, they're killer!"

"Hey, no problem," he leaned toward the other teen, acting like he was going to tell him a secret. "It was a blast buying everything I've ever wanted – with someone else's credit card!" he whispered, snickering.

Daniel nodded, understanding the other teen's enjoyment.

"So, you get to 'live English' for the next five years, huh?" Spike asked, eyeballing the Amish teen's clothes.

Daniel nodded, a grin crossing his face since he did enjoy hanging out with English boys.

"Well, you know what? Wheeljack said we could go shopping on his account if you needed anything. You wanna go to town?" Spike asked.

Knowing just what Spike was saying, Daniel's grin got bigger. "Do you know where the cool stores are?"

"Course, we'll get you hooked up with some real clothes! Maybe stop at the pool room and play a couple games if you want." Spike thought that he was really going to get to like this guy.

Daniel nodded, just glad that the other boy wanted to hang out with him; for though he'd enjoy just working with Wheeljack, he knew he'd get lonely eventually.

"Well, let's go find Bumblebee, he'll take us to town," Spike said.

Shaking his head, Daniel grabbed Spike's arm before he could walk off. "I promised Bluestreak that I'd hang out with him. He could take us."

Spike groaned, "But he never shuts up."

"I know, but he's cool and he's my friend."

Spike wanted to roll his eyes, but he did understand where Daniel was coming from. After all, he felt the same way about Bumblebee. And Bumblebee would get his feelings hurt if Spike went to town without him; for he liked to shoot pool with the humans.

Thinking quickly, he came up with a compromise.

"Tell you what; you find Bluestreak and I'll find Bumblebee. Maybe we'll let them race each other into town?"

Daniel grinned, it was a good compromise! Now he could hang out with both Spike and Bluestreak. He nodded in agreement and wandered off to find Bluestreak.

--

"Why don't I just carry both of you?" Bumblebee asked Spike, not sure why Bluestreak was invited.

Spike shrugged, "Daniel wants to hang out with Bluestreak too."

"Ya, but that Mech never shuts up."

"I know, but he's Daniel's buddy."

"Guess I could shut off my audios when my Meta starts hurting," Bumblebee said as he grinned.

Spike chuckled, "You don't have any earplugs in your glove compartment, do you?"

"No, but we could pick some up in town," the yellow Mech offered.

Transforming, Bumblebee opened his passenger door for Spike. Still making quiet jokes about the incessant gabbering of the gray Mech, they drove to Autobot City's gate.

Joining up with Bluestreak and Daniel, the four friends went to town.

--

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	12. Just Hangin'

Just Hangin' Out

**Just Hangin' Out**

"11 to the side," Spike said as he leaned over the table to make his shot.

"He's really kicking your tailpipes, Daniel!" Bluestreak quipped to his friend.

Daniel just shrugged and grinned, this was only the fifth time he'd ever shot pool, so he knew Spike'd whoop him.

Bumblebee was busy racking up the balls on the next table, getting ready for another game with Bluestreak. "So, are you actually going to shut up and play this time? Or am I going to beat you again?"

Standing up, the gray Mech grinned at his fellow Autobot. "You know what, if we could convince the Decepticons to settle on playing pool instead of shooting – you'd be our top warrior!" he joked.

As they started their game, Bluestreak's commentary never ceased.

--

"Now, those are some cool threads!" Spike said, looking approvingly at the clothes Daniel was sorting through.

"Ya, but they're so expensive! I don't want to make Wheeljack mad by spending all of his money."

Bumblebee chuckled, "Don't worry, if you can keep his stuff from blowing up – he'll never get mad!"

"Did you really have to rewire his new gizmo?" Bluestreak asked.

Daniel simply nodded; he was not raised to brag.

Spike slapped him on his back, "I was going to make sure I was as far away from there as I could be – when he does the demonstration tomorrow! But maybe I'll stick around now!"

Daniel actually blushed, not used to outright praise like that.

Bumblebee snickered, "So this one might actually work?!"

At this, Bluestreak almost fell over he was laughing so hard!

Sheepishly, Daniel nodded; "I figure it'll work right."

"See, I told you guys it'd be good to have Daniel working for us!" Bluestreak bragged.

"Ya, but the demonstration hasn't been successful yet. If Wheeljack sticks his head back in it, I'm sure he'll find someway to screw it up again!" Bumblebee laughed at his own joke.

Bluestreak made the sound of an explosion and staggered back as if he was hit. This caused everyone but Daniel to roar with laughter.

"Is it really THAT bad?" he asked. His eyes were getting bigger by the moment.

Bumblebee shrugged as he grinned at Bluestreak. "Remember when he activated the Dinobots and they tore us a new one?"

"Yep, that was definitely one of the more memorable screw ups!" Bluestreak snickered.

"The Dinobots attacked you?" Daniel asked in disbelief. Grimlock and Swoop WERE stupid, but they seemed kind've sweet natured.

"Yep, Wheeljack didn't give them enough brains to tell their heads from their afts when he first built them." Bluestreak's optics lit up in humor as he remembered the chaos that mistake had caused.

"So why'd you ask me to apprentice under him?" the boy was getting very confused.

Spike slapped him on his shoulder. "He convinced Optimus that you'd teach Wheeljack some common sense."

"Make him slow down and recheck everything like a dozen times before he flips the switch," Bumblebee added.

"And keep us from having to scrape soot off our paint every-other-week!" Bluestreak finished.

Daniel groaned, he wished Bluestreak had warned him! "So you really expect me to teach him that?"

"Banking on it," the gray mech quipped.

"So Wheeljack might go and rewire that power conversion unit?" the kid was getting worried.

Spike nodded. "He'll get some bright idea and think he can 'improve' it. Then he'll just go and screw it up!"

Daniel's eyes widened, "Do you think I should sleep in the workshop? Make sure he doesn't rewire it again?"

"Might be a good idea.." Bluestreak agreed.

"So, you gonna buy those clothes?" Spike asked, changing the subject.

Daniel nodded.

The motley group followed him up to the counter, the two Autobots still joking about how Wheeljack would find a way to screw up the gizmo before the demonstration.

As he listened to the conversation going on behind him, Daniel knew for certain, that he'd better sleep in the workshop tonight!

--

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	13. Birds and the Bees

Birds and the Bees

**Birds and the Bees**

Rolling out his sleeping bag under the shelves, Daniel was thankful that these Autobots tended to be so big. For that meant that they built their shelves quite a bit higher than a human would; heck, he could even stand upright underneath the shelf!

Getting in the sleeping bag, he zipped it up around him. Fluffing his pillow, he lay down and made himself comfortable. As he relaxed, he stared at the darkened workshop, a smile of happiness on his face. Yes, he was truly living his dream! Working on machinery all day, and sleeping amongst it at night! What else would a mechanically-addicted teen want in life?

--

Voices woke him up. Slowly opening his eyes, Daniel instantly recognized the voice of his teacher. Listening a little longer, he identified the other voice as that of the ambulance, Ratchet.

He considered sliding out from under the shelf, but he hadn't asked Wheeljack's permission to sleep here tonight. The fear that this would tick Wheeljack off; made the teen stay quiet and hidden.

He couldn't help but overhear what the two aliens were talking about. They almost seemed to be talking like they were a couple. Yes, like his love-struck older brothers talked to their girlfriend's. His eyes widened in shock, for he thought both of these aliens were guys!

But even though he'd been raised Amish, this didn't mean he was ignorant by any means. Heck, he'd been holding mares that were being covered by the jacks – since he was ten! So, yes, he knew what the heck sex was. And going to his English friends' houses, he'd seen specials dealing with gay guys on their TVs.

But, were these aliens – gay? From the sounds emanating from the pair in the workshop, it sure sounded like it.

But, then how does a robot – have sex? Daniel couldn't even begin to imagine how that happened.

As he continued to listen, he kept trying to force himself not to look. After all, this was Wheeljack's workshop, and he didn't have permission. So the two aliens deserved their privacy. But his curiosity was overwhelming.

As the two Autobots ended up on the floor, Daniel couldn't help himself, he just had to take a quick glance. As he poked his head out from under the shelf, his eyes widened in sheer amazement – for this alien 'sex' was like nothing he'd even imagined!

He couldn't help it, his eyes stayed glued on the spectacle in front of him.

After a while, the two aliens seemed to shut down. For about fifteen minutes, the workshop was silent, and then they slowly reactivated. Mumbling to each other and kissing a little more, they finally left the workshop.

Now alone, Daniel let his breath out and uttered "Wow!"

He'd had a heck of an education concerning the aliens that evening! And he wondered what their beliefs concerning the right or wrong of homosexual and heterosexual was. Granted, in the bible, sex was supposed to be just for reproduction. That's why it was a sin to be homo. But since he didn't think these aliens could actually get pregnant and give birth; he wondered if God would still consider it a sin in their case.

Well, he hadn't noticed a single female-like alien amongst them, so perhaps Wheeljack and Ratchet were opposite sexes. Maybe the females and males were identical in appearance, just like some lizards and snakes? So maybe those two were a married couple or something like that?

Now he had convinced himself that the aliens must be like snakes, and that Wheeljack and Ratchet were opposite sexes as well as a married couple. Daniel began to wonder if Wheeljack was a male or a female. Was he/she the wife or husband?

Figuring he'd eventually find a way to get the overly talkative Bluestreak on the topic, Daniel relaxed and close his eyes again. Yes, Bluestreak would explain this whole alien sex and relationships thing to him..

--

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	14. Cultural Differences

Cultural Differences

**Cultural Differences**

Daniel shifted nervously from foot to foot, still not able to look up at Wheeljack without seeing him like he had been the night before. It was highly embarrassing to think of the alien in that position, but the teen just couldn't get it out of his mind.

"Didn't sleep well?" Wheeljack asked. He had noticed the boy seemed a little quieter than the previous day. Figuring that it was either nerves over the day's demonstration, or a lack of sleep, the Autobot had shrugged off his concern.

Daniel nodded, still fighting the vision of Wheeljack on the floor with the ambulance on top of him. He gulped the nauseating feeling down, and forced himself to look up at the alien. "Um, I didn't sleep well sir," he admitted. It was the truth. He just wasn't about to admit WHY he hadn't slept well! Ratchet kissing the inventor as they had... God, Daniel felt like he needed to puke! Shaking his head slightly, he tried to force the vision out of his mind.

The inventor nodded. He'd heard Spike and Sparkplug complain about the same thing periodically, so it must be a rather common occurrence with the humans. "You're going to be ok for the demonstration aren't you?"

Glad for the change of subject, the boy forced his mind to think about the day's work. His nerves calmed down a bit. "Um, yes sir," he answered.

"Wheeljack, am I going to need to send Inferno to town for some additional fire suppressant foam today?" Ratchet asked as he strolled into the workshop. By his expression, he was not joking about it either.

Seeing the ambulance, Daniel just about ran out of the room. His stomach tightening into knots as he looked from alien to alien. Gulping his nerves down, he prayed that the aliens couldn't see his blush for what it really was. Turning his back to them, he walked over to one of his tool chests and buried his head in it. Trying to make it look like he was just sorting all of his tools, he kept his eyes off the pair. For every time he looked at the two, he saw them kissing and on the floor.

Ratchet's optics followed the quiet teen as he went over to the tool chest and made himself busy. Something was obviously bothering the boy. Narrowing his optics suspiciously, he decided that the boy must be afraid that their little power conversion unit could very well malfunction – and the boy just didn't want to say anything in front of Wheeljack.

"Nah, it's going to work Ratchet. I know it will," Wheeljack replied. He nodded encouragingly at Ratchet as he tried to convince him.

Glancing from Wheeljack to the teen and back again, Ratchet merely nodded. "We'll see," he said. Turning around, he strolled out of the workshop, fully intending to go talk with Inferno immediately. For if Daniel seemed worried; then they all should be.

"Well, I'm going to move this gizmo outside," Wheeljack announced. He noticed Daniel's slight nod in reply. Watching the boy for a minute, he was quite impressed by how thorough the kid was in arranging his tools properly. Yes, Daniel would make a very good mechanic one day!

As the inventor left with the power conversion unit, Daniel felt his shoulders droop in relief. Sitting down heavily, he put his head in his hands. God, he was so embarrassed by the whole mess! But he couldn't get the vision out of his head.

Hearing mech foot steps coming into the workshop, Daniel looked up, praying it wasn't the ambulance or the inventor. He didn't know how much more he could take, before he ran screaming out of the workshop.

"Hey, what's up buddy?" Bluestreak's cheery voice filled the room. The gray mech had waited all night for the morning to arrive, then he could see his friend again. He wished the humans didn't need to sleep so much, for that sleep took up much of Daniel's off-time. This made it harder for them to hang out.

Sighing in relief, Daniel climbed to his feet. "Boy, it's really good to see you Blue," he replied.

Grinning, the mech just loved the fact that the teen was always happy to see him. Everyone else seemed to groan and shut off their audios when he walked into the room. "So, I guess you're hungry huh?" he asked as he cocked his head in emphasis. He had been thrilled when Bumblebee had mentioned that he took Spike to town constantly for meals. This meant that Bluestreak would have a good excuse to hang out with Daniel as he did the same thing.

Daniel's eyes widened, he had totally forgotten that he had to go to town for most of his meals. Relief flooded through him, because he desperately wanted to get away from Wheeljack and Ratchet for a while. "Oh, ya, I'm REALLY hungry! Can we go now?" he asked Bluestreak as he almost ran out of the workshop.

Grinning happily, the mech followed his buddy out of the workshop. Yep, this meal thing was a great way to hang out!

--

"We've got McDonalds, Burger King and Taco Bell. But Spike calls it Taco Hell. Why, I don't know, 'cus he seems to like it, and…" Bluestreak's commentary about the various fast food joints continued. But by this point, Daniel had learned to merely say 'u-huh and yep' here and there.

Cutting the mech off, Daniel finally came up with an idea of how to start the conversation that he needed to. "Hey Blue, do you know where Spike finds all the cool chics to hang out with?"

Bluestreak was quiet for a second. "Well, I could ask Bumblebee. Apparently he's the 'chic magnet' for Spike," he snickered. He figured he'd be Daniel's 'chic magnet', but this idea didn't bother him. In fact, it would mean he'd have even more human buddies to talk to. And he figured those 'chics' would find him interesting to hang out with. So it'd be a good thing for both of them.

Daniel forced himself to chuckle at the mech's joke. It did make sense that girls would be attracted to these aliens because they were different. And being the guy that the alien hung out with; meant that Spike and himself were in a good position to 'get' those chics. "I've got a question for you Blue," he started.

"Oh, what's that?" Bluestreak loved to be asked questions. Turning at the light, he decided he'd just take the boy through the McDonald's drive-thru, since the boy didn't seem to have a preference.

"So if you guys are our 'chic magnets' are we your 'chic magnets'?" Daniel asked. He figured this would be a good way to get the alien to talk about their women. It made perfect sense as well. At least, from one guy to another.

The mech was silent for a second, "I guess you would've been. Back on Cybertron that is. But, um, we don't have any 'chics' anymore." Thinking about how the Decepticons had slaughtered all of the femmes, Bluestreak felt anger run through his core. But there wasn't much he could do about it, what was done was done.

"You don't?" Daniel was concerned, for it sounded like they used to have chics. Which meant all of these aliens were guys, this also meant that Wheeljack and Ratchet were a gay couple. His stomach sunk, because this gay idea was really disgusting.

"We used to, but the Decepticons off lined them all. But it's not like you humans, since we don't have kids or anything. They were just fun to hang out with, you know.." Bluestreak was fumbling a bit for just the right way to put it. He knew these Amish had opinions about same-sex couplings, but that was because they reproduced wasn't it? And since mechs didn't reproduce themselves, there shouldn't be a big deal. Should there? He really hoped it wasn't a big deal, since he liked hanging out with Daniel.

Daniel's heart sunk. They were all homos. And his father and the other elders would not tolerate him apprenticing under sinners like that. But Blue was right, the aliens didn't reproduce with their 'sex'. So perhaps it wasn't a sin? The bible did say it was only a sin since sex was to produce babies, and homo sex didn't produce babies – didn't it? So since they couldn't have babies, well…. It was a technicality, true, but a very important one!

"You're not going to have to go back home now – are you?" Bluestreak asked. His voice had almost a pleading tone to it.

Daniel sighed unhappily, everything was so confusing now! But he didn't want to leave. So he had to know more, that way he could convince the elders that these aliens weren't all sinners according to the bible. "Well, um, I don't know. But if you could, like, explain everything to me. Maybe not."

"Oh, Ok – I could try," the mech answered. Pulling through the McDonald's drive-thru, he waited patiently for Daniel to order and get his food. Then they parked under a tree, so that Daniel could eat, and Bluestreak could try to explain everything. Leaving his engine running, the mech kept the air conditioning on so that Daniel would be comfortable.

"So you guys do have sex or something with each other, huh?" Daniel asked. Stuffing his mouth with the Egg McMuffin, he leaned back and picked up his coke while he chewed.

"Um, ya, guess you could say so. But it's not like what you humans do by any means," the mech answered, trying to think about the best way to go about explaining just what 'bonding' really was. He had a general idea of how the humans did it, and that was far different. Humans couldn't integrate systems and shutdown like mechs did.

"Ya, I know," Daniel said, as he took a sip of his drink. He pictured what he had seen the night before. Nope, wasn't like the human 'sex' in any way.

Bluestreak had a sneaking suspicion now that Daniel knew more than he was letting on. "Did you sleep in the workshop like we were joking about yesterday?" he asked.

Daniel nodded, taking another bite of his breakfast.

One thing Bluestreak was really good at, was observation. And he knew that Ratchet and Wheeljack had disappeared at about the same time the night before. They'd been gone for an hour or so. Knowing that the two were bond mates, Bluestreak quickly put two-and-two together. "You saw Wheeljack and Ratchet – didn't you?" he asked. As he began to quietly snicker.

Bluestreak's reaction; caused Daniel to relax about it. Obviously, it didn't seem to bother his friend in the least, that Daniel had caught his two friends 'in the act'. In fact, the alien seemed to be finding it highly amusing. "Ya, it was weird. I could barely look the two of them in the face this morning," he admitted.

Bluestreak was now rolling in laughter, his whole chassis vibrating. Some people whom were parking next to them, stared at Daniel as his 'car' seemed to be moving strangely on its shocks. They continued to stare as they walked into the restaurant.

"Well, I guess I don't have to explain HOW it's done – do I?" Bluestreak snickered. He could just picture the kid's face as he watched those two. Guess either he or Bumblebee should've warned the kid about that couple, but they hadn't thought that Daniel would actually take them seriously about sleeping in the workshop.

"I guess not. But, um, why do you do it? Like, I know why we do it – but you are machines. You don't exactly have the same, um, reactions that we do." Daniel sipped his drink, rather curious as to what these machines would feel during 'sex'.

"Oh that. We overload all of our circuits and shutdown. Feels real intense, I guess you could say. Then we come back online and everything resets. Makes you feel like a brand new mech for a while," Bluestreak explained. As he talked, he started to realize that it'd been an awful long time since he'd enjoyed himself that way. Perhaps he'd get himself assigned to a patrol with Smokescreen soon. They'd had a lot of fun during their last 'patrol'. Or possibly Tracks. He was a little egotistical to be sure, but he was a lot more creative than Smokescreen. Bluestreak sighed, in some ways it was good to be a member of the 'unbonded' group – you got a little 'variety'.

Daniel thought about it. "So basically it feels good to a machine to overload and then reset?" he asked. It didn't make much sense, but then the human reaction probably didn't make much sense to the aliens either.

"Pretty much. We don't do it to reproduce or anything. Guess we just do it to reset or something like that," the mech replied. Yep, he really did need to have some private time with Smokescreen or Tracks - soon.

Daniel was silent for a bit. He chewed the rest of his food slowly, as he thought about it all. Yes, these aliens were 'homo' since they were all the same sex. But even when there were women aliens – they never reproduced. So did their sex really matter? In fact, if there were no babies – were they really different sexes in the first place? By the bible's standards, they'd be sinners either way – since they didn't have 'sex' to reproduce at all. So did the bible really apply to them in that way? And was overloading circuits and resetting – really 'sex' in the first place?

It was confusing, but he really didn't think the bible's standards concerning this topic – really covered what these aliens were doing. So he didn't think they'd be considered 'sinners'. He didn't know how he'd ever explain this all to his father, and he was hopeful that it'd never come up. But in his book, they weren't sinners.

"So, are you going to have to go home?" Bluestreak asked. He was really afraid that the whole same-sex thing was going to screw up his friendship with the kid.

"Nah, I don't think the bible applies to you aliens on this one," Daniel answered. He thought he could actually feel his friend relax. "So tell me, who's paired with who? That way I don't get shocked again.."

Bluestreak pulled out of the parking lot. Very happy that his human friend would stay on as Wheeljack's apprentice for a while! "Well, lets see… You know who Wheeljack's with. Well, then we've got Sideswipe with Sunstreaker. That is, when Sunstreaker's not trying to kick Sideswipe's aft over a prank. Inferno's the only one who can handle Red Alert's slight paranoia. That mech tends to go nuts over the strangest things. And one time I caught Prowl and Jazz, but I don't think they're a pair on a permanent bases. Since Prowl thinks Jazz is a little flaky and Jazz is always annoying Prowl by trying to make him 'chill out'. And well, then there's Prime and Ironhide – whom don't seem to go with anybody. They used to have femmes and I think they're both still grieving over their loss. Then there's Bumblebee…." His commentary on the personal relationships between the various Autobots continued all the way back to Autobot City.

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	15. Demonstration

Demonstration

**Demonstration**

"So do you aliens get, like, married to each other or something?" Daniel asked. He began to wonder if they'd exchange rings or maybe circuit breakers during their ceremonies.

"Um, what do you mean?" Bluestreak asked. He'd heard Sparkplug mention weddings and stuff, generally when the man was groaning over the fact he and Spike would have to 'dress up' to attend one. But he really didn't know what the humans meant by all that pompous and stuff.

Daniel's eyes got big; these aliens didn't know what marriage was all about?! "Well, uh, it's like a ceremony to tell the world that you'll never, um, bond with anyone else. Like 'till death do you part' type stuff."

Bluestreak was silent for a bit. So THAT'S what all the hype and stuff was about! He'd always kind've wondered why the humans took that ceremony so seriously. "Nope," he answered Daniel. His internal 'shrug' could almost be felt.

"Really?! Why not, if you aliens fall in love and stuff?" the kid asked. He tried to imagine a traditional ceremony with Ratchet and Wheeljack as the couple. Granted, they wouldn't be wearing wedding clothes or anything. And just which one would be the 'bride'? Hmmm, he guessed that would have to be Ratchet – since the guy was already painted white.

"Guess we never thought about it before. It's not the most logical thing you know," the mech said dismissively. Though now that he understood the concept, it seemed to be a reasonable thing for two beings that were in love to do. That way there'd be no question they were a couple, and other mechs would know to stay away from the pair like that. Yes, there had been some confusion periodically. Like the time that he'd 'accidentally' chased after Sideswipe. He hadn't realized that Sunstreaker had considered the mech all 'his'. Boy, the aft whooping he'd gotten from that yellow mech sure had hurt!

"So you guys had just never thought of it?" Daniel asked. He guessed that this made sense, for they were controlled by computers and didn't seem to be the most imaginative thinkers. Well, except for Wheeljack – who was always coming up with strange ideas to 'invent'.

"Nope, but it's rather interesting. Bet it'd stop some of the confusion as to who's with whom, huh?" Bluestreak's mind was racing. Yep, this might be a good idea for the Autobots to consider. But, who'd be the easiest pairing to convince to do it? His meta scanned over the different relationships he knew about. And settled on the inventor and medic, it made sense, since they were older and had been a pair for a long time. Wheeljack was the kind of open-minded nut to actually consider the idea seriously. And if anyone could convince the medic to do something – it was Wheeljack.

"Maybe you could figure out how to put this idea in Wheeljack's head? That'd be funny to see a wedding between the two," Bluestreak snickered.

Daniel sat back in the passenger seat, leaning the seat back a little more to make it more comfortable. He shrugged in answer to Blue's idea. But the alien was right, it would be kind've funny to see two robots getting 'married'. Now, how in the devil could he ever bring the idea up, without revealing that he'd caught the couple in the 'act'? The boy sighed; perhaps this was why God sent him here? To teach these aliens some of his laws? Pushing the thought back into the recesses of his mind, he decided that he'd eventually figure out a good way of going about it.

Then Bluestreak began his whole commentary about some of the other pairings amongst the Autobots. This time, mentioning which ones he thought should get 'married'.

By the time the two were halfway back to Autobot City, Daniel felt comfortable about the entire alien 'sex and relationships' thing. So he figured he could actually look at Ratchet and Wheeljack without feeling embarrassed anymore. But there was one thing that Bluestreak seemed to be leaving out of his whole commentary on the personal relationships of the Autobots. Just who was HE playing around with? Because Daniel really didn't want to 'walk in' on his buddy – he just really couldn't picture the alien like that.

"Um Blue," he interrupted.

Bluestreak shut up in mid-sentence. He'd been really getting in deep as to why he didn't think anyone hung out with Gears. "What?" he asked.

"So who're you hangin' with?" Daniel asked. He was a little embarrassed to be asking his buddy such a personal question, but that sure beat the shock of possibly interrupted Blue when he was having 'fun'.

"Oh, ya.." Bluestreak was quiet for a second. In a sense it was fun 'playing the field' but in a sense it also hurt a little bit that no one seemed to want him for their sole bond mate. That's one reason he'd been so lonely and grabbed onto the first human that wanted to hang out with him. It wasn't physical attraction by any means – it was just to have someone to talk with and keep him company. He hoped Daniel wouldn't realize how desperately lonely he'd been. "Well, I'm one of the mechs who, um, plays the field. I guess you'd say. You see, there's a group of us that hang out together. But, um, we're like younger than the others, so we don't want to commit or anything." Bluestreak felt that he'd put it pretty well. Made it seem like he had possibilities – but that HE didn't want to bond or anything.

"So you're, like, my age?" Daniel asked. His eyes got bigger as he realized his big friend was just a teenager like him. It was actually kind've cool.

The kid had bought it! Bluestreak relaxed, knowing he'd kind've stretched the truth a bit. But it wasn't that far off. And he was a lot younger than Optimus or Ironhide – wasn't he? "Ya, I guess in human vs Cybertron years – it's something like that."

"Wow! That's cool," the teen grinned. That meant that he could really talk the alien into trying all sorts of stuff. Maybe that's why Spike hung out with Bumblebee? Because that alien was also young?

"Ya, its pretty cool don't you think?" Bluestreak agreed. The warm feeling of having a buddy spread through him, because he'd always wanted a bud that wanted to hang out! "Maybe this weekend we could go to this car show, its over in L.A. but I think Optimus would let us go and…" The mech's commentary on what they could do over the weekend, continued on as they drove the rest of the way to Autobot City.

--

"So this gizmo here I call the 'Power converter'. It will take all types of current and convert them to the direct current we need for our energon cubes," Wheeljack explained. He waved at the gizmo with a flourish, trying to ignore the less-than-convinced expressions on many of the gathered mech's faces. He knew it would work! He'd even tried it right after Daniel had left for breakfast. Now there were a few things that could be improved upon.. But he just hadn't had the time…

Daniel stood in the background, trying to be inconspicuous. Bluestreak caught his eye, for the mech was standing behind a few of the other aliens, and making funny expressions as Wheeljack talked. Trying to keep a straight face, Daniel motioned for his friend to quit it.

Ratchet was nodding to Inferno, to be ready for when the inventor flipped the 'on' switch. The two exchanged a knowing glance, as Inferno nodded that he'd made sure to overfill his tanks with the fire-suppressant foam. Pressurizing his systems, he prepared for the inevitable.

"Well Daniel, since you helped, I'll let you turn it on," Wheeljack said. Motioning to his assistant, he stepped back with a big smile on his face.

Gulping, the boy walked forward, thinking that it was a pretty good thing that Wheeljack had been too 'busy' doing other things last night – to mess with the Power converter. After his long discussion with Blue, he found he could actually look the inventor in the face again; which really was a blessing, for he hadn't wanted to avoid the couple indefinitely. Fingering the 'on' switch, he noticed the fire engine holding one of his hoses at the ready. _Boy, these guys really have faith in Wheeljack, don't they_? He thought sarcastically.

Flipping the switch, he heard the wiz of cooling fans coming on within the machine, preparing it for the electric load that would soon flow through. Then a couple of clicks could be heard. AC/DC current flowed in. The inductors and resistors fluxed with the opposing currents. Then, it came to the other end of the machine, filling up an energon cube.

Wheeljack literally beamed in pride that his newest gizmo actually worked! Glancing around at the mechs staring in disbelief, the surge from his core filled his systems with warmth. Dancing around the Power converter, he snagged the full cube, and tossed it nonchalantly at a rather surprised Optimus. "See, I told you all it would work!" he exclaimed.

"Yes you did Wheeljack. My apologies for doubting," Prime replied. Taking a sip from the cube, he passed it to the mech standing next to him. Pretty soon, several cubes were making their way around the ranks, with the mechs all stammering their apologies to the inventor.

Later, Wheeljack strolled away. Motioning for Daniel to follow him, he headed into the workshop. He shut the door behind them and kneeled down so that he could talk to his assistant privately.

"Well, I gotta hand it to you; you did a real good job rewiring it. Thanks!" Wheeljack praised him. He knew the kid had saved his aft from yet another one of those embarrassing screw-ups, so he really did owe the kid a big one!

Daniel looked down at the floor, not used to direct praise like this. "Well sir, that's, uh, what you hired me for. Right?"

The inventor started to laugh as he patted the boy gently on a shoulder with one of his metal-skinned fingers. "You're worth every penny! I want you to go over to Perceptor's lab and learn about optics and stuff. Because next week Ratchet and I have got to go and make sure everyone's optics are re-aligned properly. You know; regular maintenance and stuff. It'd sure go faster with your small hands to do the fine tuning. And then you can take this weekend off – Ok?"

Daniel grinned up at his teacher. Blue would be absolutely thrilled that he was 'free' this weekend. And Daniel couldn't wait to see L.A.. Man, this apprenticeship couldn't go any better!

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	16. New Ideas

New Ideas

**New Ideas**

"Converging lenses take parallel light rays and bring them together at the focus, which is where the CCD picks up on the impulses. These impulses are then sent to….." Perceptor rambled on as he drew the schematic plus a ton of equations on the dry erase board.

Spike moaned and put his head in his hands, his fingers were now cramping from the frantic scribbling of notes. "Are YOU understanding a single word of this?" he whispered to Daniel.

Daniel shrugged; he'd seen some of this stuff at the community high school he had attended. But if he recalled right, this was in that physics class, not the mechanics class. "Ya, kind've, but this is physics I think," he whispered back. He continued to copy what Perceptor was writing.

This made Spike groan. "God, I flunked that class twice, I'll never get this stuff!"

Daniel just grinned. "Don't you think we'll just be plugging the stuff into a computer and then doing whatever it tells us?" he whispered back. He sure didn't like the thought of having to calculate to how they needed to adjust each alien's optics by longhand calculations. It'd take them an entire month to get all of them done that way!

"I sure hope so," Spike whispered back.

"Eh-hum, are you two listening?" Perceptor asked as he turned from his writing and looked at the two teens.

"Um, yes sir. I was just, um, telling Spike what a CCD was," Daniel stammered as he blushed in embarrassment for having been caught talking 'in class'.

Perceptor's optics went from one to the other. He realized he hadn't really explained what 'CCD' referred to. Deciding to back up a little, he began his lecture again. "CCD stands for the 'charge-coupled device' and……"

Keeping their mouths shut this time; the two humans looked at each other and silently groaned as one….

--

"Mmmmm, I do like these patrols…" Bluestreak murmured as his reactivated his optics. Yes, he sure did like it when Optimus assigned him and Tracks on the same patrol. Though the other Autobots found the red-faced a bit on the snotty side, Bluestreak had come to respect the mech for his creativity; A little bonus due to the mech's interest in human culture.

Reactivating his optics, Tracks looked over at Bluestreak and grinned. He did enjoy the fact that this mech didn't have a problem trying 'new' things. And that last 'human adult film' had given Tracks numerous ideas to see if similar things would work on a mech. True, Bluestreak wouldn't shut up unless a mech kept his lips occupied – but that wasn't a big problem for Tracks. "I assume from your reaction that the new 'position' is a keeper?" he asked the gray mech.

Stretching out his stiffened linkages, Bluestreak grinned. He had rather enjoyed the 'new position' though it had strained some of his linkages. But heck, he'd do it again if given the opportunity. "Your ideas are always good Tracks," he replied.

Tracks got a self-satisfied grin on his face. "You know, if more mechs paid attention to human sexuality, it wouldn't be so freagin' boring at the ark. They just have no imagination at all." His optics lit up at the thought of trying what the humans called an 'orgy'. Now THAT would be highly arousing…

As Bluestreak contemplated on that idea, he realized it might be the perfect time to plant another human idea into Track's meta. For if any mech could plan a killer wedding ceremony, it'd be the red-face! And if it was a human idea, Tracks would support it. "Ya, you gotta point on that, Tracks. Humans do have some killer ideas," Bluestreak mumbled. He kept his voice level, not wanting the red-face to realize that he was 'planting' an idea. "You know what? I found out what that human marriage stuff is all about."

Tracks rolled onto his back, stretching lazily as he looked up at the clear blue sky. "Oh, and what's that?"

"Means that the two individuals involved, won't bond with anyone else," he said. Bluestreak watched the mech from the corner of his optic to see his reaction.

"Basically bonding, huh?" Tracks was unimpressed so far.

"Ya, but they do it officially so no one ever gets confused. Like you did with Sunstreaker that time," he replied. He couldn't help but bring that little fact into their conversation. For at about the same time that he'd gone after Sideswipe, Tracks had gone after Sunstreaker. Bluestreak had merely gotten his aft whooped – whereas Tracks had gotten whooped, then duct taped to the ceiling of the command center. Sideswipe was not a mech to piss off, that was for sure!

Tracks turned his head, looking at Bluestreak. "Heck, I didn't know – did you?" He was still more than a little miffed about what Sideswipe had done to him, but he still thought Sunstreaker and himself had more in common. It was Just a pity that Sunstreaker didn't see the obvious truth to that.

"Nope, we wouldn't have gotten our afts whooped if the two of them were officially 'married' – don't ya think?" Bluestreak couldn't help but chuckle.

Tracks was trying to picture how an 'Autobot wedding' should go. He'd seen enough of the weddings of the ultra rich humans, had even volunteered to drive a newly wed couple to their private jet – mainly so he would be invited to the party. But those weddings were the ultimate in human society. They incorporated everything he liked about the culture. Yes, it'd be very satisfying to get his fellow Autobots to develop some kind of taste and class.

But did he really think they could sucker Sunstreaker and Sideswipe into being the 'first marriage'? He doubted it. Going through his list of known Autobot pairings, he concluded which pair would probably be the easiest into convincing. "Of course, we can't expect to convince the twins to have that kind've class…" he muttered to Bluestreak.

"Maybe not at first, but if we get another pair to do it – then maybe later…." A devilish gleam came to Bluestreak's optics. Tracks was more than being suckered into his 'plan'.

"I bet we can sucker Wheeljack into it though…" A huge slag-eatin' grin was spreading over his red face as he pictured the perfect ceremony that he could organize. It would have both class and excitement!

"What a great idea Tracks! But just how?" Bluestreak replied.

Tracks thought about it for a while. "You know, we all have optic maintenance next week, if we spread the rumor that those two were 'engaged'… Well…"

Bluestreak chuckled. Oh, this was going to be – sweet…….

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	17. Starting Rumors

Starting Rumors

**Starting Rumors**

"Hey Jazz, do you want to go to a real club?" Bluestreak joked as he and Tracks strolled by the mech. He winked at Tracks as he said this, knowing the mech found Jazz just as attractive as Bluestreak did. If the mech was really on the out with Prowl.. Could get interesting to say the least..

Tracks snorted, "He wouldn't know what to do in a club with real class." His optics challenged the black helmed mech. He knew Jazz would just absolutely die to go to a classy club with a live band. Seemed like a perfect way to tempt him out of the Ark. And he knew that Bluestreak wouldn't have a problem 'sharing' – if it actually came down to that later on.. Granted, they were actually planting the seeds of rumors with this outing, but if there was some secondary fun to be had…..

Predictably, Jazz perked up a bit. He was getting very bored with the endless patrols. The darned radio stations seemed to keep playing the same song loops, and he hadn't had the time off to go to town and replace his malfunctioning I-pod. So life was becoming very unbearable. Especially since Prowl wasn't speaking to him right now. Even hanging out with the snot was better than enduring another boring patrol. "So, does this joint have a live band?" he asked hopefully. He desperately needed some excitement or he'd go haywire soon. And with Bluestreak along, he wouldn't have to listen to the snot diss every mech's style as he compared it to the humans' style.

Bluestreak turned his head. "Depends, you gonna show us how to dance?" His optics gleamed in mischief, for he'd heard that Prowl and Jazz were on the 'rocks' again – so Jazz would be considered 'available'. And he wouldn't have to worry about a whooping from Prowl either.. Granted, Tracks was in on it too. That meant Prowl would have to try and whoop them both, which wouldn't happen…

"Sure, I could teach ya," Jazz offered. The excitement in his optics was unmistakable. He loved to dance to some good tunes, and to have mechs that seemed to want to learn… Well, that was a heck of a lot better than Prowl.. Sigh.. Why was he so freagin' stuck on that boring mech?! But they'd gotten into a big spat a couple of days ago, so Jazz really wanted to hang out with some of the other single mechs – perhaps he could have more fun than just dancing tonight? He eyed the two mechs, knowing both of them had well-earned reputations as 'players' in that manner. So it wouldn't be hard to convince either one to have some fun, would it?

Tracks winked at Bluestreak. "I guess you could join us then," he decided. His engine revved a little bit, for being 'in' on such a complicated practical joke was very exciting. Heck, he might even convince some of these mechs to try out some of those other 'human ideas' he'd been studying from those 'films'. He scanned Jazz's aft with his optics. Not bad! And if the mech was truly 'on the out' with Prowl at the moment, he might even consider having some real fun….

"Hey, where you mechs headed?" Smokescreen asked. He had overheard a portion of the conversation at it sounded like they were planning some fun on the town. When he noticed which three mechs were going, his engines increased slightly in rpms – for they were all fun to hang out with. Granted, he did more than just 'hang out' with Bluestreak on occasion. But none of these mechs were the jealous types, more often than not; they tended to swap up partners for fun. And did he hear that Jazz was broke up with Prowl??

Nodding his head at Tracks, Bluestreak figured he'd improv a little and sucker another mech into it. After seeing his fellow conspirator grin knowingly, the gray mech nodded to Smokescreen. "We're going to one of Tracks' hotspots and Jazz is going to teach us to dance – you wanna come?"

Tracks almost fell over trying not to laugh at Bluestreak's choice of words. He knew the mech meant it spelled –um and not –ome, but heck, the more the merrier – right? This was going to be a blast! Especially since he knew from experience that Smokescreen could be coerced into trying new things as well.

"Sure, it'd be cool to get out of here for a while," Smokescreen said as he fell in behind the other three. He couldn't keep his optics from drifting down and scanning their individual tail pipes. Yep, this could be a very interesting evening.

The four younger Autobots headed for the entrance, joking and laughing about learning 'to dance'.

"Where do you four think you're going?" Prowl asked. He shifted so that he was in front of the group. From the looks on all of their faces, he knew with certainty that they were up to something; Most likely not good, either. The fact that his estranged boyfriend was part of the group of 'single mechs'; made him even that much more suspicious of their intentions.

Bluestreak nodded that he'd take care of this one. The other three just gave each other conspiratorial looks, knowing that if anyone could talk their way out of this – it was Bluestreak. That mech could even talk Optimus into believing anything – providing you gave him some motivation to do it..

Jazz tried to keep his poker face on, it was still very hard to look at Prowl since their most recent fight. But heck, he was just going out to hang out with some buds wasn't he? So why did he feel a touch guilty?

Putting his arm over Prowl's shoulders, Bluestreak made like he had to tell him a secret. "Man, I can't tell anyone this, I promised.. But you've got to believe me. We're on 'official business' on this trip," he whispered loudly.

"I haven't heard of any, and if Prime had –" Prowl started. His optics narrowed suspiciously, for if any mech left the Ark on 'official business' it would be himself!

Bluestreak cut him off. "This isn't official Autobot business; it's like private business for one of our top officers." He winked at his friends standing within audio range. He was now on a roll, and it wouldn't be long before he'd talked their way outt've the Ark for the afternoon.

The second-in-command scanned him with his optics, trying to decide if Bluestreak was pulling his tail pipe – or actually being serious. With this mech, you never could tell. "Well, if you mechs want to leave, you'd better tell me what this 'business' is and who it involves," he flatly stated.

Acting like he was scanning for other listeners Bluestreak shook his head. "But we promised not to tell anyone. It's like real personal and stuff."

Prowl crossed his arms. "Then you're not leaving, period."

Looking questioningly over at Tracks, whom just nodded and shrugged, Bluestreak gave and exacerbated sigh. "Well sloggers, we've got to go, we promised… Promise you won't tell?" he asked Prowl.

By now Prowl was extremely curious as to what all the secrecy was about. This must be a really big deal if Tracks, Smokescreen and Jazz were also in on it. He couldn't believe he hadn't been the one informed. And this fact made his curiosity become overwhelming. So he nodded.

Bluestreak motioned for him to lean over. Cupping his hand, he whispered something into the mech's audios. Prowl's optics got so big that Jazz swore they were fixing to pop the lenses straight out! After he was done whispering, Bluestreak stepped back.

"Are you freagin' serious? Ratchet?!" Prowl whispered in total shock. Cooling fans came on as his heat built up from the sudden emotional shock.

Tracks nodded, knowing exactly what Bluestreak must've told the mech. He couldn't believe how easily that mech could make anyone believe anything, without even questioning its factuality. Bluestreak was a heck of a spin artist for sure!

"Well Primus, get out of here – now!" Prowl ordered, the excitement bright in his optics. He then flew by the group and went into the Ark.

"Do I want to know what you said?" Smokescreen asked. He'd never seen anyone change Prowl's attitude so quickly. Well, besides Prime. But that was just because Prime was the boss and you'd better jump when he said to, even if you weren't feeling like it that day cycle.

"And what kind of business involving Ratchet are we supposed to be doing?" Jazz asked. He was still staring at the entrance to the Ark in wonderment. He just wished he was a slick enough talker to change Prowl so fast. Perhaps he should get some pointers from Bluestreak. Then it'd be easier to smooth those arguments between them out…

"Oh that? Ah, we just have to glance in some shops on the way to the club, nothin' big," Bluestreak said dismissively. He watched his fellows from the corner of his optics, knowing that his dismissive ness would just heighten their interest.

"Glance for what?" Smokescreen asked. He was getting very intrigued about all this secrecy. He thought they were just going dancing, and perhaps a little 'fun' later on…

Tracks began to grin, Bluestreak's act was perfect! The red face knew exactly what the mech was leading into, so he decided to jump in. It'd make it much more believable. "Well, Ratchet wants us to look for a gift; something with some class." He did his standard puff-up, since everyone knew that HE had the most class of all the Autobots.

"For what?" Jazz asked. He was very confused as to why Ratchet would send these two. Especially for some 'classy gift' or something, it didn't seem to make sense..

Bluestreak leaned forward, indicating for them all to go into a close huddle while he whispered the secret. "He needs something real romantic you know..."

"…Because he's going to ask Wheeljack to marry him," Tracks finished the sentence smoothly. His optics locked with Bluestreak's. Oh, if this worked out… The wedding he could plan.. His rpms increased slightly as he could picture the class and culture that he could bring into the Ark with just the right Florist and Band…

Jazz and Smokescreen looked at the two in shock and amazement. "Um, if you don't mind me asking, just exactly what does 'married' mean?" Smokescreen asked. Jazz nodded his agreement. They'd both overheard Spike griping about 'attending' weddings, but neither one had a real clue as to what the pompous was all about. The fact that Ratchet and Wheeljack might be doing this – made it truly fascinating indeed!

"We'll explain it on our way to town, ok?" Bluestreak said. With a knowing exchange of glances between himself and Tracks, they all transformed and headed into town. Bluestreak and Tracks explaining the entire way….

--

"Hey Bumblebee, have you seen Blue around anywhere?" Daniel asked as he walked up to Spike and the yellow mech. He'd looked all around, and his friend was nowhere to be found, so he was starting to wonder how he was going to get to town for dinner.

Bumblebee shuffled his feet a little nervously, he knew that the group of notorious 'players' had taken off together to town, so there was really no telling when they'd get done with their 'fun'. But he didn't think he should be telling the teens about all that. "Well, um, think he and some of the others were sent on a, um, special mission," he stammered.

Daniel looked a little downcast. "Oh, um, could I go with you two to town?" he asked hesitantly.

"Sure thing!" Bumblebee cheerfully said as he transformed and opened his doors. He liked hanging out with the young humans, the more the merrier as far as he was concerned.

"Get in, we're going to Sonic for dinner," Spike said with a grin. He liked the other guy, and at least he wouldn't have to listen to Bluestreak's endless chatter on this trip.

--

Please review..


	18. Enlightenment

Enlightenment

**Enlightenment**

"So just what did Perceptor mean by focus image and object image?" Spike groaned as he swiped his fries into the ketchup and stuffed them into his mouth. Now having much more ketchup than fries…

Daniel shrugged, since he'd actually passed physics he had the general gist. "Um, basically object image is just the object itself and the focus image is, like, after it's gone through one lense.. I think…" he answered as he took a swig of his coke.

"I thought you guys were learning how to adjust our optics?" Bumblebee asked as he listened in. He enjoyed taking them through Sonic, since everyone sat in their cars at this joint so no one thought it was weird when his human friends did. But whatever they were discussing made absolutely no sense to the mech.

"Ya, that's what I thought! Then Perceptor popped a whole shit-load of Physics on our asses!" Spike griped. Looking over at Daniel he realized that maybe he shouldn't be cussing so much, the guy had been raised pretty strict and everything. "Um, sorry 'bout the cussing, I'm just frustrated since I didn't understand a single word today," he tried to explain.

"No big deal," Daniel said as he shrugged. "I'm just hoping he doesn't get into double lenses and stuff, I barely passed that test. And that was, like, last year!" he said as he winked at Spike.

"So to work on us, you need to know Physics?" Bumblebee asked innocently.

Daniel couldn't help but snicker. "Man, I hope not! It'd take us a day of calculations to get each one of you done!" he exclaimed as he grabbed his head in mock agony.

"So we wouldn't be able to focus for a whole day?!" the yellow mech mumbled with dread in his voice.

"Ya, pretty mu – What the?! Was that Bluestreak that just zoomed by?!" Daniel exclaimed as four sports cars zoomed by the Sonic. They seemed to be almost racing, as they cut each other off and swerved around the corner. Not a single driver in any of them.

"Shit! I think so… What are they doing here Bumblebee? I thought they were scouting con sites or something?" Spike asked, as he wiped off the ketchup that he'd just splattered all over himself when he had suddenly turned to look.

"Um, well I kind've exaggerated.." Bumblebee sputtered. If he was in robot mode his face would've been a much darker shade since he'd gotten caught in a lie.

"Then what are they doing here?" Daniel asked. He began to eye the steering wheel suspiciously. This sounded like one of his brothers covering for another brother's ass when…. His eyes got bigger as he realized what Bee was probably covering up.

"Well, um, they're just hanging out, um, you know," Bee stammered. His engine began to choke a little bit with his nervousness.

Daniel began to laugh hysterically, even more so as Spike stared at him in total confusion as he took a swig of his Dr Pepper. "They're going to get laid?! Is that what you're trying to say?" Daniel said in between shrieks of laughter. For aliens, these robots sure did act human sometimes!

At Daniel's words, Spike choked on his drink, starting a coughing fit for a few seconds. Daniel ended up slapping the other boy hard on the back several times before he caught his breath. At the same time, Bumblebee was in such shock that the kid kind've knew what was going on, that he stalled out completely and had to restart his engine.

"Did… Did you say.. What I think you said?!" Spike asked Daniel, his eyes bigger than Daniel thought was humanly possible.

Daniel shrugged, "I figured you already knew what they did."

"How in the…. Holy sh-… what do they…. Um, dang! How'd you find out so quick?" Spike asked the other boy. Being the same age, and having lived amongst the Autobots for over two years now, he figured that he'd be teaching the other kid about the bot, not the other way around.

"Bumblebee's never told you?" Daniel asked with big eyes.

They could almost feel the Autobot shrinking in size, like he wanted to hide under a rock or something. "Um, well, I know what it's all about but, um, …" the yellow mech stammered.

Daniel cocked his head, looking at the steering wheel curiously. The Autobot was almost sounding like a fourteen year old 'English' virgin guy that he had known at the community school. Things began to click in his mind. The way the different aliens sounded, the difference in the way they treated each other. Bumblebee was actually younger than Bluestreak! And while his Blue buddy was, like, mature enough for that kind've fun – Bumblebee must not be. "You're a lot younger than Bluestreak, aren't you Bumblebee?" Daniel asked him.

"Well, ya," the yellow mech admitted. Now even the yellow paint of his body was appearing to get a shade darker.

Spike looked from Daniel to the steering wheel and back. Something was going on between the two, and he wasn't in on it. "So, uh, what are you two talking about?" he asked.

Daniel set his drink down and leaned over like they were conspiring on something. Even though the Amish were raised with strict beliefs concerning virginity before marriage, it was a fairly openly discussed topic since they were in the business of breeding livestock. So talking about it with their friends was not a big deal. "It's like this Spike. These aliens do something that apparently feels similar to our sex. They call it bonding or something."

"Oh," Spike said as he tried to imagine just what in the hell two robots did to make themselves feel like that. His imagination wasn't that good, so he quickly gave up on the attempt. "So what exactly do you guys do?" he asked Bumblebee.

"Um, I think Daniel seems to know more than I do," the yellow mech bashfully admitted.

Daniel patted the steering wheel. "Man, it's ok, we're virgins too," he said comfortingly.

"You're a virgin?" Spike asked Bumblebee. He knew the mech was one of the youngest ones, but he had thought he was fairly mature. Heck, he went into battle didn't he?

"Uh, ya, guess that's what you guys call it," the mech answered.

"So how do you know so much?" Spike asked Daniel.

Daniel blushed a little bit. "I slept in the workshop the other night," he admitted.

"You saw Wheeljack and - ? No way!" Bumblebee stammered. Heck, the kid now knew more than he did on the subject!

Nodding, Daniel took a sip of his drink. Then an idea went through his mind. "Hey Bumblebee can you track your friends?" he asked innocently.

"Ya, I guess so," the yellow mech answered.

Daniel grinned mischievously at Spike. "Well, you two want to learn what it's all about?" he asked. After getting to know Bluestreak pretty well, he didn't think the mech would mind. After all, Bumblebee needed to find out – didn't he?

--

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	19. Peeping Toms

Peeping Toms

**Peeping Toms**

Bumblebee pulled up and parked. They were in an industrial park, with dozens of warehouses all around them. "Well, um, my locator says there's Autobots in the warehouse on the right," he informed the boys. He was still a little nervous about secretly spying on some of his fellow mechs, but on the other hand, his curiosity about bonding was truly beginning to overwhelm him. He really did just have to know what it was all about!!

Spike and Daniel looked over at the warehouse, and then at each other. Spike had the uncanny feeling that Daniel was better practiced at 'spying' on siblings, than he was at spying on anything. Granted, these weren't exactly 'siblings' but it was the same general concept, wasn't it? "So what do we do now?" he asked the Amish teen.

"You stay here until we wave you over, ok Bumblebee? Since humans are walking all over the place, they'll never notice us while we scope it out," Daniel said. Excitement filled him. For he hadn't done something this fun since he'd busted his eldest brother for racing his team against a cousin's! A very big no-no in the Amish community..

The two teens slid out of the yellow bug and walked toward the building. "We got to find either a low enough window, or a door that's cracked," Daniel said quietly.

Spike nodded.

As they reached the building, they split up, each one walking quietly around his side. Daniel spotted a window that was reasonably low to the ground. Climbing on top of the dumpster next to it, he peered in. His eyes opened wide and his jaw dropped as he saw just what was going on inside the building. Jumping down, his feet made puffs of dust rise up as they hit the dry gravel. Going back around the building, he motioned to Bumblebee and Spike to come over.

Soon, all three of them were peering through the window. As a unit, their eyes were bugging and their jaws were hitting the ground. They stood there for just five minutes, not daring to even so much as twitch or blink for that matter. Slowly, they turned and looked at each other with huge eyes. Daniel motioned that they should be leaving.

Quietly, they all ran back to the drive. Bumblebee transformed and the two teens jumped in. Trying not to peel out, the yellow mech got out of there as fast as his wheels could go.

"Shit, I didn't know you guys could get in those positions," Spike whistled.. The vision of what he had witnessed flashed before his eyes.

"Neither did I," Bumblebee admitted. His meta was reeling with all the new data. His logic circuits trying to discern just how complicated it would be to maintain balance in the position that Tracks had been in.

"I tell you what, that was a whole lot different than what Wheeljack and Ratchet were doing the other night," Daniel added. He'd expected to just see what he'd seen already, not what he'd actually seen! Shit, he didn't think Bluestreak was that limber!

"Um, maybe that's what, like, a mech orgy is or something?" Spike asked. Like most teens, he'd heard the term, had a general idea about what the terms meant and had joked with his friends about it… But never in a million years did he ever expect to actually WITNESS one! Much less with Autobots involved!

"Um, what's an 'orgy'?" the yellow mech asked. All these human terms were very confusing. But they did make sense when you figured out their definition.

"Well, uh, means a bunch of people, like, having sex with each other or something," Spike answered. He shrugged and looked at Daniel, hoping the boy could give a better description.

Daniel just shrugged back, he knew as much about 'orgies' as Spike did… Basically, just rumors and jokes told back and forth. It wasn't something that the Amish ever did, that was for sure. Only the English did it.

"Oh," Bumblebee said. He mulled the definition over in his meta for a bit. He'd never really heard of groups of mechs disappearing together on a regular basis, most of the time it was just pairs of them. He didn't know if he'd ever really be interested in doing what he'd seen back there. But Daniel had said that it was a lot different from what the pair he'd seen do. "Um, what'd you see Wheeljack and Ratchet do?" he asked sheepishly.

Daniel thought about it, he still didn't know quite how to explain it. "Um, well remember what Jazz and Bluestreak were doing at first?" he said.

"Ya," Spike and Bumblebee said at the same time.

"Kind've like that, but not what they did after that with Tracks," Daniel explained.

_Oh, so that's what it was about_. Bumblebee relaxed a bit. Yes, eventually he could picture himself doing THAT with some mech one day, just not everything else.

"You know what was really funny?" Spike asked them. A big grin spread across his face.

"No what?" Bumblebee and Daniel asked at the same time. Daniel couldn't help but look down at the steering wheel. It was so funny how this alien acted so human.

"How in the hell did Smokescreen do THAT while hanging upside down?!" Spike exclaimed.

Instantaneously, all of them broke out in hysterical shrieks of laughter.

--

"We'll have to do this again sometime, don't you agree?" Tracks said as he leaned against the warehouse wall with his hands behind his head. He had almost a half-dazed expression on his face. Yes, it had been a very, very good idea to let Smokescreen in on the fun. Between the three of them, they'd convinced Jazz to try some rather interesting things.

Bluestreak rolled over and sat up. Yes, he was very satisfied at how it'd all worked out. A little con, a little rumor planting, and a whole lot of bonding fun – all in the same day! Just couldn't beat it. But he was far from done with the scheme. Pulling the envelop with the 'present' they had so conveniently purchased for Ratchet to 'give' to Wheeljack, he thought of an idea. "Hey Jazz, could you give this to Mirage? Ratchet wants this little 'surprise' to be left on Wheeljack's workbench tonight," he asked as he held the envelop out to the dazed mech.

Jazz slowly sat up, shaking his head, he tried to clear his meta from the multiple bonding daze he was currently suffering from. "Um, ya guess I could," he stammered. His optics still not quite focusing properly, he held out his hand in the general direction of Bluestreak's voice. "Um, would ya'll promise not to say anything about this?" he said.

Smokescreen snickered and pounded him on his back. "Still stuck on the most boring mech in the Galaxy, huh?" he joked.

Jazz blushed, nodded sheepishly and focused his optics on the ground.

"Ah, we'll keep our mouths shut as long as you promise us something," Bluestreak snickered, his optics bright with mischief.

"What's that?" Jazz asked. He prayed it wasn't something really weird.

"Next time you two are on the out – you come and see us," Bluestreak told him. His optics showing exactly what he meant.

Now Jazz really blushed, but he had enjoyed it. Perhaps he could talk Prowl into trying something different for once… Possibly? .. But he nodded his agreement to Bluestreak.

"Aww Sloggers!" Smokescreen grumbled in disgust as his internal clock told him that they were overdue to be back at the Ark. He stood up, a little unsteadily. "It's time to get back to work," he told the group.

Grumbles were heard, but as a group, they transformed and headed back to the Ark.

--

Please review…


	20. The Plot Thickens

The Plot Thickens

**The Plot Thickens**

"Jazz, we need to talk," Prowl stated flatly as he caught sight of the mech.

Jazz skidded to a stop, his hand outstretched to rap on Mirage's door. Forcing the thudding in his chest to calm down, he slowly turned towards his bond mate. He was terrified that Prowl knew what he'd been up to with the group of notorious 'players'. "Um, ya, what's up?" he asked.

Prowl nodded for him to follow him without a word.

As the mech turned his back to him, Jazz chewed on his lower lip in anxiety as he followed silently along. He did love Prowl, but he was so damned frustrated with the mech! He hadn't meant to cheat.. But heck, they'd been 'on the out' – so was it really cheating? Bluestreak said it wasn't. He said it was only cheating if you were still tight with your mate at the time. Prowl had yelled at him to find someone else if he 'wasn't happy' – hadn't he? Hadn't he?!

Leading them into their quarters, Prowl finally turned around as the door slid closed behind Jazz. He studied his mate, who was staring sheepishly down at his feet. "Did you really HAVE to go out with THEM?" he demanded to know.

Jazz fidgeted nervously, not able to meet Prowl's optics, "well, um, I guess not. But I wanted to have some fun Prowl. Don't you understand?"

Prowl sighed in disgust; striding up to Jazz he laid his hands on his shoulders. "Look at me damnit!" he ordered.

Timidly, the mech met his optics. Jazz clenched and unclenched his hands nervously, fully expecting Prowl to completely blow up on his aft. He wouldn't be surprised if he found himself flying down the corridor after Prowl literally threw his aft out.

"Does freagin' dancing and partying REALLY mean that much to you Jazz? Does it?" Prowl demanded to know.

Jazz nodded sheepishly. "It takes my mind off everything. The war… The friends I've lost… Everything.. I've got to have some fun," he stammered.

Prowl rolled his optics. He'd never understand it. Never! But sloggers did he love this freagin' mech. It had really torn him up to see Jazz leave with the 'players' earlier in the day. Even though they'd not been on talking terms for over a week, he still didn't quite consider them fully broke up. He didn't want to. But obviously, he'd have to make some kind of concession – or this same thing would keep happening. "Ok, I tell you what Jazz…" Prowl started.

Jazz shifted from foot to foot, not sure what to expect out of Prowl. Were they going to make up again? Or was this totally the end?

"If I promise to go out with you, say, twice an Earth month or so… Would you be happy?" Prowl asked. He sure hoped it would. Anything more than that and the paperwork would build up. Work was always first to him, but he did love this damned party mech – so he had to do something.

His mouth fell open in shock! Prowl was actually willing to go out on dates?! Was his audios malfunctioning or something?! Running a quick internal sensor scan, Jazz realized that his audios were functioning properly. So Prowl was actually willing to go out! "Really Prowl? Really?!" he asked, his optics literally beaming in happiness.

"Yes, I'm serious," Prowl confirmed. A light feeling pervaded his core, for it had been such a long time since he'd seen Jazz this happy with him.

Jazz literally leapt into his arms. Taking his lips with a passion that he hadn't shown in many orbit cycles! But then the sound of paper smacking against the back of his helm, brought the pragmatic Prowl back into the here-and-now. "What's that?" he asked as they separated.

Jazz looked down at the envelope he was holding. "Oh ya, kind've forgot. I was supposed to give this to Mirage to put in Wheeljack's workshop tonight," he explained.

"So this is the present you four bought with Ratchet's creds?" Prowl asked as he held his hand out. He'd always wondered just what in the devil Tracks would think was a 'classy' gift.

Handing it to Prowl, Jazz nodded, "Yep, it's a weekend getaway to some exotic beach or something. The travel agent said it was the bomb."

"Hmmm, guess I need to write those two off the shifts then?" Prowl mused. He had pulled the travel packet out of the envelope and was thumbing through it curiously.

"Ya, guess we should've asked if it'd be cool. But you know…"

Prowl shrugged dismissively, if this was Ratchet's idea – then who was he to argue? That mech had far more orbit cycles and seniority than he did. "Why don't you get some defrag? I'll pass this along to Mirage later," he offered. He could tell from Jazz's face that he was tired.

"Cool, thanks a lot Prowl," Jazz said with a happy smile and wandered over to the berth.

Prowl smiled as he watched his bond mate shut down. If going out twice a month was all it would take to keep him happy – he'd do it. Looking down again at the travel packet, he wondered if all this marriage talk was really worth this kind of effort. But if gruff old Ratchet was going to do this… Maybe he'd one day consider it? It'd definitely make Jazz's day cycle – wouldn't it?

Stuffing the contents back in the envelope, he strolled out of their quarters. Lost in his contemplations of relationships and marriage, he flat ran into Optimus as he rounded a corner.

"Prowl?" the big mech asked. He'd never seen a 'far away' look in the pragmatic mech's optics. It was more normal for mechs like Jazz or Beachcomber – not Prowl.

"Oh, sorry Prime, just thinking about the schedules I've got to change this weekend," Prowl explained.

"I thought you had those set over a month ago?" Prime asked. He raised an optic ridge in curiosity, for Prowl NEVER liked to make last minute changes to the schedule. He'd bitch and gripe for days afterwards – even if it was Prime that requested the change. Yet here he was not seemingly to be bothered in the least about the schedule change.

Prowl tapped the envelope he was holding against his other hand. "Well yes, but this is a special event. So I'm making an exception," he said.

Now Optimus was highly curious. Cocking his head, he studied the mech and the envelope he was holding. "So just what type of special event is this? I haven't heard of anything," he stated.

Motioning him to bend down, Prowl whispered an explanation in his audio. Prime's optics got bigger and bigger in total shock.

"You're serious? Ratchet?" he whispered back in disbelief.

Prowl nodded, "and I've got to get this to Mirage so he can stick it on Wheeljack's workbench tonight." He held up the envelope.

Optimus snatched it out of his hand. "I'm on my way to a meeting with him. I'll make sure Mirage knows just how important this little 'mission' is!" he promised as he strode away. A huge smile was hidden behind his mask, for he couldn't believe one of his oldest friends was fixing to ask the 'big question' – as the humans called it.

--

_**Note: **This is one of those stories, started on a whim... Which then got a life of its own. I have no idea where it will go from chapter to chapter, as I write each of them when the mood or idea strikes me. I'm now watching some 'romance rumors' going through the student body at work, and it's given me quite a bit of 'rumor mill' inspiration!_

_--_

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	21. Preoccupied

Preoccupied

**Preoccupied**

"So in if we have a depth of three centimeters between the lenses and a foci with a diameter of four-point-five meters, where would the image be focused?" Perceptor asked the two boys.

Daniel looked sideways at Spike as he frantically wrote down the stats of the problem. It'd been so hard to concentrate today, since his thoughts were now drifting to the physics of just how Smokescreen had managed to do what he'd seen him doing the afternoon before. Now THAT would be some interesting calculations! He considered asking Perceptor to do that problem, but he wasn't nearly that bold.

Spike groaned softly as his fingers cramped. He noticed the sly look that Daniel shot his way and knew his buddy was thinking along similar lines. This crap was boring.. Boring!! If they had to do physics, why not do it on something interesting? Like how many Autobots could be involved in the same orgy at the same time.

Shaking his head, he tried to push those thoughts from his mind. But for a teenage guy like him, that was nearly impossible since he tended to have a stray thought about human sex - or girls at least - like, once every five minutes or so… Granted, now he had the vision of robots locked in the same scenario.. It was weird for sure. But hell, he'd been almost raised by these mechs for several years now…

Perceptor glanced from one boy to the other, neither one was really working on the problem he'd just given them. It was so simplistic he just couldn't fathom why they couldn't spot the answer! But obviously something else was on their minds. And humans just weren't as good at multiple different calculations like mechs were. Slamming his dry erase marker down, he'd had enough. "So just what is occupying your frontal lobes?" he asked them, frustration in his tone.

Daniel and Spike looked up in surprise at the red mech's sudden outburst of frustration. He'd always been the rather patient type, more than happy to rephrase and relecture the same topics for hours on end. Now he was giving them an expectant look. So obviously their lack of attention had been very noticeable today.

"Um, nothing Perceptor," Daniel stammered as he looked up at the thin red mech. He tried to put on his most innocent expression.

Spike glanced at his friend, knowing he was stalling in the hopes that Perceptor would just go back to the lesson. Neither youth wanted to admit about having sexually explicit thoughts. Even though it really wasn't about 'sex', it was about 'bonding'. Regardless, it was still an embarrassing subject for a teen guy to talk about. Well, to authority figures and parents that is...

Perceptor looked from teen to teen, they were both hiding something and he knew it. He was going to question them for however long it took. He didn't care if it took all day. "You are very preoccupied about something other than 'nothing' - so what is holding your interest?" he demanded to know.

Giving each other a guilty look, the boys knew they'd been had. Now that Perceptor had figured out that they were both preoccupied, he'd keep pressing for the reason until they relented. Whether it took five minutes or five hours of questions, he'd end up getting it out of them. So they might as well come clean, right?

"Well, um, just thinking about the physics of how you aliens bond," Daniel stammered as his face turned a little red. He shifted nervously in his chair, hopeful the alien wouldn't get angry about the fact he and the others had been peeping toms of late.

Taken aback by that statement, Perceptor was speechless for a moment. Just how had the two young humans learned about this fact? Optimus had decided when they'd first let Spike and Sparkplug to join their ranks that they'd keep that part of their existence a secret. He had ordered all the mechs to seek total privacy when they sought to bond, concerned as to what the humans would think of the 'morality' of it all. Since humans had these strange ideas about morality to begin with. So just how had these two boys learned about it? "How did you come across this knowledge?" he asked Daniel.

Daniel and Spike shifted nervously under his strong gaze. Both of them knew he wouldn't approve of what they'd suckered Bumblebee into doing the day before, but perhaps he wouldn't get angry about Daniel's 'unintentional' viewing of Ratchet and Wheeljack? It wasn't on purpose was it?

"Well, um, Daniel slept in the workshop the other night…" Spike started, glancing sideways at his friend.

Daniel quickly figured out what angle Spike was going after. It made better sense to tell the alien about the accidental viewing. "And, um, I didn't know that he and Ratchet were, like, a couple you know," he added.

"And then he asked Bumblebee and Bluestreak about what he'd seen. I just happened to be hangin' with them at the time," Spike finished. It sounded like a feasible story didn't it?

Perceptor considered this. Yes, it was a feasible story. Ratchet and Wheeljack wouldn't have suspected the new apprentice would be sleeping under a shelf or something. And they were one of the most stable of the Autobot pairings, so they most likely bonded on a fairly regular basis. Daniel would've witnessed it all. Most likely in total shock as well. And though Bumblebee was too young to have much knowledge, Bluestreak was one of the more 'active' mechs in the ranks. With his 'big vocalizer', he would've told his human friend all about it when asked. Sighing, Perceptor realized that the mechs' secret was out. The humans knew. He knew that Optimus would be concerned about what they thought of the act. "So what are your opinions about the fact that we do this?" he asked the boys.

The two boys looked at each other bemusedly. He didn't seem angry in the least. In fact, he seemed a tad concerned that they knew about 'bonding'.

"Well, guess everyone needs to get laid. Mechs too," Spike answered him with a shrug.

"But you guys should get married first. Like we're supposed to," Daniel added.

--

Optimus strode down the corridor, a bounce to his step. He rubbed his fingers against the envelope he carried. So Ratchet was finally going to do it? About time. The big mech had learned about this whole 'marriage' thing when he'd given a lift to Sparkplug to one of his old friend's weddings a few years back. He'd asked the man about it, and they'd had a rather long conversation on the topic. So, Optimus more than understood the meaning of the word. He'd once considered bringing the idea up to some of the other mechs, but there just hadn't been the right opportunity.

But apparently Ratchet had found out about 'marriage', and considered it a good idea. And if he did it, Optimus knew other pairs would follow suit. It would make it easier. Then he wouldn't have to continually peel Sunstreaker off mech's afts for their pursuit of Sideswipe. Prime sighed, since the femmes went extinct and the mechs had to find other mechs to enjoy bonding with, life for them in that manner had gotten a tad complex. Perhaps this whole marriage thing would help clarify who was off-limits and who wasn't?

Deciding that it was indeed a good thing, Prime smiled. Perhaps he'd give the couple a 'gift' as well. For why should they drive all the way to this weekend get-away when they could be flown? Changing the direction he was headed, Optimus walked towards Powerglide's quarters. Yes, he'd order the plane to give the couple a lift. It was the least he could do…..

--

_**Note: **This is set in more G1 first season. During this period the Autobots and Decepticons both considered the femmes extinct. So I'm very aware of the femmes (see my story Beauty Within and Beauty of Life.. They're main characters in those stories)_

_--_

Please review…


	22. Complexities

Complexities

**Complexities**

Mirage grinned as he slid into Wheeljack's workshop. Fully cloaked, he knew that even if the inventor came in, he'd never be spotted. But this was one of those very rare occasions that the spy was extremely thrilled to be sneaking around. For this little 'mission' was simply to make a mech happy. There wasn't any sabotage or possible violence. And for Mirage, who was always reliving those memories of peace and fun before the war, this 'mission' was truly an intake of fresh air!

When Optimus had come to him and handed him the envelope. Mirage had been a bit confused about why it needed to be 'snuck' into the workshop. But then Prime had whispered the reason, his optics literally beaming in happiness. The spy had understood then. That although this was a 'mission' he couldn't fail – this would be one of those 'missions' he'd always remember with a smile on his face. He had eagerly agreed to it.

So with visions of Wheeljack's optics beaming with joy when he came back from this little 'romantic getaway' that Ratchet was surprising him with. And telling all his fellow Autobots with pride that they were now 'engaged' – Mirage scanned the workshop for the perfect spot to place the envelope so that Wheeljack couldn't help but spot it. Wandering around, he set it here and there. Then he'd step back and study it. Not happy, he'd move it to another location.

After fifteen minutes, he finally found the perfect spot for Ratchet's surprise gift. Opening the top of Wheeljack's favorite tool chest, he taped it there. Now the mech couldn't help but find it, now could he?

With a final glance at his work, Mirage chuckled and slid quietly out of the workshop.

--

Perceptor had found the two boys incredibly interested in his lessons now. He'd started to relate everything he was explaining to 'bonding', and darned if those two weren't eagerly writing down every word, every period, every number – as fast as they could move their pencils! Calculations? – a breeze now. Theories? – simplistic for the youths to understand. He wished he had known just how fixated human teens were on anything pertaining to sex or bonding. It would've made this entire ordeal go so much smoother!

"So do you think you two could learn about how the bonding nets are structured?" he asked the boys. It was only Wednesday and they'd already covered the optics lessons. Since he had them until Friday, he might as well educate them further.

Daniel's eyes lit up. "You're serious, sir? Why do we need to, like, know that? I mean, not that we're not interested or anything, but…" he stammered. Heck, he was interested in knowing, that would explain a whole lot of things.

"Ya, um, why would we be repairing THAT?" Spike asked. He felt queezy just taking his clothes off for those school required physicals. So he knew he had absolutely no interest in being any kind of doctor or anything. But to, like, be repairing his mech friends', um, you-know-what's – would be awkward to say the least. Granted, he wouldn't mind knowing how – he just wouldn't want to have to do it. It was like looking at the other guys in the locker room, you made sure to avoid ever looking THERE. It's not like the mechs had dicks or anything, but it was the same general gist.

"As part of our medic team, it is highly important that you have a general idea of how to repair all of our networks. You never know what can happen when an Autobot is cornered by a few Seekers," Perceptor stated. Unfortunately, he'd observed and assisted in the repair of numerous Autobots who'd had the misfortune of being force-bonded with by multiple Seekers when they'd been cornered. It wasn't pretty, and it would surely happen again.

At first, the two teens didn't understand what he meant, but then Daniel's eyes filled with horror as he realized what that meant in human terms. "Geeze, you mean that the Decepticons will, um, rape you guys or something?" he asked with disgust in his voice. His face turned slightly green in shade.

"God, that's sick man. Totally sick! I thought they just wanted to kill you guys, not, um.." Spike couldn't even bear to utter the rest. He also seemed to be a rather – green – color now. The mere thought of Decepticons doing THAT with his Autobot friends was making him physically ill.

Perceptor studied the two teens' reactions. It was amazing just how similar they were to the Autobots reactions when this happened to one of their friends. No Autobot would care to corner a con and force-bond with him, but the cons didn't seem to have any inhibitions in doing that very thing to an unfortunate Autobot. In fact, from all reports, the cons thought it was a rather 'fun' thing to do. "Yes, it isn't logical. But they do this," he replied, "and there can be a significant amount of damage to the victim's nets."

Although they were both very interested in learning about the nets, both teens hated the reason that they had to learn about them. Neither one ever wanted to see one of their mech friend's in a condition that would require these repairs.. So until Friday came along, they learned about the complexities of bonding networks.

--

Wheeljack strolled into his workshop. He knew he had to get the place a little more organized before next week's optic maintenance. Ratchet would give him hell if he wasn't prepared! Wandering over to some shelves, he began to sort his supplies and stack them in an orderly fashion. Slowly, he worked his way around his workshop, sorting and cleaning as he went. Until finally, only his main tool chest was left.

Walking to it, he realized there was an envelope taped to it. With a deft swipe of his hand, he pulled it off and brought it closer to his optics.

_To Wheeljack, with love; _Was written on the front of it.

Wheeljack felt excited butterflies go through his core. There was only one mech who 'loved' him. And Ratchet must've gotten him a surprise! Was it a gift card to Home Depot or Autozone?! Shaking the envelope, he listened intently with his audios. Nope, nothing… Had to be some kind of gift card or something! Oh, did he love shopping at those two stores.. Though Home Depot was better since they were in a warehouse and he and Ratchet could actually 'wander' the isles if they were careful. He couldn't wait to go there with the white mech. It was so much fun to get away from the base and just be a couple!

Getting a dreamy expression in his optics, the inventor shook the unopened envelope again. Yes, perhaps this time he'd get Ratchet to loosen up. Maybe after they went shopping they could find a private spot in the nearby National Park and have some fun? Maybe he could convince the mech to stay out all night – and just enjoy each other for a while? It was so hard to get Ratchet to relax. He was such a damned workaholic!

With an excited smile, he slit open the envelope and dumped its contents on top of his workbench. His expression became slightly downcast as he realized that there was no gift card. Cocking his head in curiosity, he picked up the mech-sized brochure, his optics getting bigger and bigger as he scanned the pictures. He then read the description of the 'weekend getaway'.

_Spend two glorious days basking in the sun.. Walking along empty beeches.. Or enjoy daily tours of local attractions such as: Corvette museum, Harley Davidson museum, and many others.. Enjoy your romantic getaway.._

Just as he had finished reading the description, Wheeljack's audios picked up the sound of his workshop door opening. Turning, his optics caught sight of Ratchet. With an excited squeal, he ran across the room and jumped into the white mech's arms. Not even noticing the surprised expression on Ratchet's face, Wheeljack flipped off his mask and locked his bond mate's lips in a passionate kiss. His bond mate had planned a dream weekend for them! They were going to have so much fun! Wheeljack was so excited!

--

Please review…


	23. Reluctant date

Reluctant Date

**Reluctant Date**

As Wheeljack let go of his lips, Ratchet was speechless. Totally and completely speechless! He couldn't even get his vocalizer to come back online because of the system shock. Just what in the heck had he done to make his bond mate this happy?! He searched back through his recent memory files. Reviewing every comment, every action for the answer… But nothing was out-of-the-ordinary.

"Oh Ratchet! We're going to have so much fun! Thank you, Thank you, thank you!!" the inventor exclaimed as he gave him another passionate kiss.

Ok, now this was getting more confusing by the astrosecond. Ratchet narrowed his optics in thought even as he more than enjoyed the attention that Wheeljack was lavishing on him. What were they going to have 'fun' doing? Had the ever imaginative Wheeljack come up with another one of his not-so-bright ideas of a fun date? No, he couldn't have. For he was thanking Ratchet rather profusely for whatever it was! So just what in Primus was he being thanked for?! He hadn't planned anything!

Ratchet's optics narrowed even further. He'd recently given Sideswipe an exhaust flush. _Perhaps the freagin' prankster was giving him some 'payback'? The little red slogger was such a pain in the aft! _He danced with Wheeljack's glossa with his own even as he continued to deduce what was likely going on. _Yes, the slacker had probably gone and done something stupid. Since there hadn't been any con action of late to keep his hyper meta busy, and of course Ratchet was a favorite target. _But then why was Wheeljack involved? And why was he so freagin' happy?!

Finally, Wheeljack let loose of his lips again. "Oh, I've got to pack! When do we have to leave?! Are we driving there?" he asked excitedly as he turned his back to Ratchet and began digging through some of his shelves.

Ratchet looked at his mate's aft curiously, for he still had absolutely no idea where they were going. He just knew that he was going to make Sideswipe pay dearly for this one. But then his optics fell on the pile of mech-sized brochures that were laying on top of Wheeljack's workbench. Picking one up, he quickly scanned the information. The freagin' prankster had set them up on some type of weekend getaway, huh? That meant that Prowl would be more than willing to help him kick the Lamborghini's tailpipes, since Prowl had both Wheeljack and himself on shift. Ratchet grinned evilly as he contemplated what he could do to the prankster with Prowl's assistance.

"So are we driving?" Wheeljack asked excitedly as he looked up from his frantic packing.

Forcing a smile on his face, Ratchet shrugged. His bond mate was so darned happy about this trip that there was no way he was going to blurt out that it wasn't his idea! But when he got back, Sideswipe was going to pay.. And pay dearly!

A thought seemed to cross Wheeljack's meta, "Oh crap! Prowl's gonna be pissed.. We're both on the schedule this weekend." His optics widened in dread.

Again, Ratchet just shrugged in response. Sideswipe was the one that was going to pay, after he explained the situation to Prowl that is. So the medic wasn't worried much about Prowl. So perhaps he should start packing as well? He debated on what he should go grab. Perhaps some wax and buffing rags? It'd give them something to do while they 'relaxed' now wouldn't it? Since Sideswipe had paid for this little getaway – Ratchet might as well somehow find a way to enjoy it. Granted, he had so much to do around the base, he really didn't want to go. But heck, might as well. He'd have plenty of time to come up with some pay-back ideas!

"Ya, I don't want to skip it either. Guess we'll just face the music when we come back, huh?" Wheeljack said and also shrugged. He turned back around and continued to sort through his stuff while he mumbled about what he should pack.

After Wheeljack had finished, they walked out of his workshop together and headed for Ratchet's repair bay. The medic still silently contemplated what he wanted to do to Sideswipe when they got back. Should he give him a detergent exhaust flush? Perhaps a carburetor flush? Those were even more uncomfortable, and the red mech would be smoking out his tailpipes for day cycles!

Optimus Prime was striding down the corridor towards them. Ratchet grimaced, just waiting for the mech to ask what they were up to. Then Prowl's audios would catch wind of it. But then-again, if he quietly explained what the freagin' prankster had pulled, perhaps Prime would throw the mech into the brig while they were gone. Yes, that would be very satisfying to think about while he sat on the beach and waxed his bond mate.

"Powerglide is waiting out front. You two have fun!" Prime said jovially as he walked up to them and smacked Ratchet on his shoulder armor.

Ratchet's optics widened in total disbelief, _what the heck?! Sideswipe had gotten Prime and Powerglide in on it?! _Oh, was he so going to pay for this when Ratchet got back! Three wretches instead of the normal two... Double carb clean with some additive detergent in his energon.. Ratchet grinned, he could always claim as the medic that the little slagger needed it.

Wheeljack just beamed in happiness as he nodded to Prime. "Wow! We don't even have to drive! This is great!" he babbled joyfully. He glanced at his bond mate, totally certain that Ratchet had arranged for this surprise as well.

Ratchet caught that glance. Vector Sigma! He was stuck playing this game until he got back, was he? Well, then he'd play the game to the fullest darnit! He just shrugged again and smiled back at Wheeljack. But in his meta, he was wondering just how far the creative prankster had gone with this one.

Optimus looked from one-to-the-other, a strange gleam in his blue optics. Leaning down, he whispered "good luck" in Ratchet's audio and then walked off without another word.

Ratchet stared after the mech, even as Wheeljack grabbed his arm and dragged him towards his repair bay. He didn't even pay attention to all the things that Wheeljack was babbling about that they should bring. _Just what had Prime meant by that? Was he in on this prank? Was something embarrassing going to happen? _Ratchet didn't know the answers. But he made sure to pack a whole bunch of extra wrenches and his weapon as well. If Sideswipe thought he was going to embarrass him somehow on this 'weekend getaway', by Primus – Ratchet was going to give him a heck of a meta-ache! And the freager would have to BEG him to repair his aft! BEG him…

--

"Thank god we're so done!" Spike snickered to Daniel as they ran out of Perceptor's lab. It wasn't that he didn't like the mech or anything, and once they'd started discussing bonding and stuff – the lessons had gotten interesting. But five days straight with any teacher – sucked!

"You and me both!" Daniel agreed. He grinned at his friend. Thank god it was the weekend. And here, humans didn't have to work on Saturday as well as Sunday, so he got two days off! Was he and Bluestreak going to have some fun in L.A.!

"So what are you up to this weekend?" Spike asked him as they settled into a leisurely pace. He and Bumblebee were going to a car show in L.A., perhaps the other two would like to come? True, Bluestreak wouldn't shut up, but he was ok once you learned to tune him out.

"Going to a car show, and you?" Daniel asked.

Spike's eyes got big. Maybe they were going to the same one?! That'd be cool. "The one in L.A.?" he asked.

"Think so," the other boy replied. His eyes lit up at the mere thought of wandering around looking at cool cars, with a really 'cool car' walking besides him.

"Us too! This is so cool! You want to hang with us?" Spike asked. He liked hanging out with Daniel. Then he'd have a guy to talk to while they looked at the cool cars, and the hot babes standing next to them!

Bumblebee walked up to the two boys. Catching the drift of their conversation, his blue optics lit up. It'd sure be cool to have another mech to wander around the car show with. He knew the two humans would spend just as much time gawking at the girls as they did the cars, and he had no interest in listening to them talk about human chicks. At least with Bluestreak along, he could talk about really important stuff, like comparing different alt modes. "So, you two coming too?" he asked.

"Yes, guess so. It'd be cool to camp together too," Daniel answered as he grinned at Spike. "So when are you guys heading out?" he asked.

"Figured we'd go now. Then we can get Spike's tent set up at the campground before dark," Bumblebee answered.

Daniel got a downcast look. Bluestreak wouldn't be back from patrol for another hour or two. So he'd have to wait. He wouldn't leave without his friend. "Well, guess I'll see you then. It'll be a couple hours before we can leave."

"No big deal. Just meet us at the Sack-man-do Campground off exit 153. We'll get a good campsite!" Bumblebee replied, a big smile on his face.

Relief flooded over Daniel's face. He could remember those directions. They could camp out tonight together and get to the car show bright and early! It was perfect! "Ok, see you there!" he said as he trotted off towards the quarters he shared with Bluestreak.

--

Please review..


	24. Vacations

Vacations

**Vacations**

Wheeljack flipped through the brochures as he babbled to Ratchet about what they should do first. The Harley Davidson museum would be a blast! They'd never considered building a mech with that as an alt mode, so perhaps they'd learn a thing or two? Or maybe the Corvette museum first… Corvettes were built real light, even lighter than Lamborghini's so perhaps they were even faster? That'd make a heck of an alt mode. But which one first?.. Or maybe they should walk the beach first… Wheeljack rambled on-and-on..

Ratchet pretty much ignored the mech as he stared out Powerglide's window and watched the clouds go by. He had to admit that this prank was earning the gold medal for creativity. How he hadn't caught wind of it – before becoming helplessly entrapped in it – he had no idea. For he'd pretty much always managed to stay one step ahead of the red Lamborghini when Sideswipe was targeting him. Until now, that is. So perhaps Sideswipe had had help coming up with this one?

Narrowing his blue optics, Ratchet deducted the likely co-conspirators. Sunstreaker was top of that list. Who else would come up with this 'vacation' idea? That rather sadistic mech would find it beyond amusing to watch his brother pull some embarrassing stunt on him while he defragged next to Wheeljack. And he had accidentally scratched Sunstreaker's paint job the last time he'd worked on him. The yellow mech had become rather enraged at the perceived 'insult to his paint job' and hadn't spoken to Ratchet for several day cycles afterward.

Yes, Sunstreaker just HAD to be in on this one! Who else would have the nerve to con Optimus into believing that Ratchet had actually PLANNED this vacation? And who else would Prime actually BELIEVE!? Leaning back into his seat, ratchet continued to tune out Wheeljack's happy rambling. Crossing his arms, he continued his silent contemplation. Yes, there's no way Prime would've believed Sideswipe. Heck, he KNEW that Ratchet was just as much of a workaholic as Prowl! So why in Primus's name would Ratchet ever shirk his duties and go gallivanting around with his bond mate?! But if Sunstreaker had helped set this up, Prime would've believed him.

Another strange thing had occurred while they had walked out. Prowl and Jazz had come by to see them off as well. The pragmatic schedule manager had grinned at him and told him to have fun. HE HAD GRINNED AT HIM!! What-the-hell?! Prowl NEVER grinned – unless he was fixing to blow the tail fins off a Decepticon Seeker! Then the white mech had put his arm around Jazz and given his mate a strange look. Prowl NEVER showed his love in public! NEVER! So just what in the heck was up with the mech?! Was he starting to get a glitch in his meta? Was Ratchet going to come back on Sunday only to find Prowl totally fragged?!

Dread filled Ratchet's core at that thought. Of all mechs to get a glitch – Prowl would be one of the worst! The only one that would be even more dreadful would be Prime himself! Heck, it would take Optimus's help to just grab Prowl and drag him into the med bay.. Then the big mech would have to hold him down so that Ratchet could fix him! Primus! Now Ratchet would be fragged just thinking about the extra work he was in for when he got back to base.. Relax this weekend?! Ya right…

Powerglide lowered his landing gear and performed a flawlessly smooth landing on the island's main runway. Bragging slightly – well profusely – as far as his passengers were concerned, he taxied to the cargo off-loading area and parked near the giant Fed-Ex jets. He was glad that Prime had requested for him to give his friends a lift to-and-from their little island get-a-way, for he'd be the first one that Wheeljack would confide in about getting engaged.. He couldn't wait to see the mech's excited face when he returned on Sunday to pick them up!

Like everyone else on base, he'd been rather surprised to hear that Ratchet was going to ask Wheeljack to marry him. Of course, he hadn't exactly understood what this whole 'marriage' thing was about, so he'd asked Sparkplug to explain it to him. When he'd found out what it was about, it made him even more shocked that RATCHET of all mechs was going to be the first to utilize this rather 'human' idea. Even Sparkplug was shocked when Powerglide had informed him of the reason he was inquiring about the topic.

After the two mechs had gathered their bags and hopped off, Powerglide transformed. As Wheeljack wandered out of audio range, the flier put his arm over Ratchet's shoulder armor. "We all heard what you're gonna do. Buddy, it's a great idea! A great idea!" he whispered in the medic's audios. Without even waiting for a response, Powerglide transformed back to alt mode. "See ya right here at fifteen hundred on the mark on Sunday! Have fun!" he chuckled as he took off.

Ratchet's mouth hung open as he stared at the rapidly disappearing red plane. _What in Primus's name was THAT all about?! What idea?! _He narrowed his optics in fury. Just what rumor had Sideswipe and Sunstreaker started?! The little freagers! He was going to so pay those twins back!! Perhaps he'd even tie Sunstreaker down and let Tracks repaint him.. Yes, pay that sadistic bastard back dearly! For Sunstreaker despised Tracks with a passion – and it was more than reciprocated by the other mech. Yes, having Tracks eagerly repaint Sunstreaker would be a highly satisfying pay back for Ratchet! He couldn't wait to witness it next week…

"Oh come on!" Wheeljack said as he grabbed Ratchet's hand. His blue optics gleamed in excitement as he grabbed the silent medic, lifted him off the ground and twirled him around him in a big hug. He just couldn't believe that his bond mate had planned this all for him! Just for him! It was so sweet!

A jeep pulled up and a well dressed human woman stepped out. "You must be Mr Wheeljack and Mr Ratchet?" she asked. Her strange island accent giving her words an almost musical quality.

Setting Ratchet back down on his feet, Wheeljack spun around with gleaming optics. "Yes, yes we are," he replied. He'd never been called a 'Mr' before. But he knew from watching human interaction that it was a sign of respect. Wow! This lady respected him without even knowing him! This was great!

The retreat's hostess stared from mech-to-mech. She'd only seen these aliens on TV, and never realized just how BIG they were! Silently thanking the travel agent for giving the work crews specific measurements of what these mechs needed in their 'bungalow', she smiled up at the huge robots. Her secret revulsion of gay relationships kept well-hidden under her well-practiced professional exterior. After-all, these robots couldn't reproduce, so who cared if they were gay? They were here for a romantic weekend, just like all the human couples. And it was her job to ensure that they were pleased. It could possibly mean even MORE business with the alien Transformers.. "Well, just follow me then and I will show you to your private bungalow," she stated.

Wheeljack grinned at Ratchet, and then transformed to alt mode. Helplessly caught up in the whole prank, Ratchet transformed and followed. His meta still coming up with ideas to do to Sideswipe when he got back to base.

--

"Bumblebee this is going to be great!" Spike said excitedly to the steering wheel as they rolled down the empty highway on their way to L.A. Excitement filled the boy. It'd just be the four of them, with no commanding officers nor adults to boss them around! It was a teen's dream!

Bumblebee grinned on his unseen face. "Yep, it's going to be a fun weekend huh?" he replied. Visions of walking around the car show with Bluestreak filled his meta. Like always, they'd end up being the center of attention, since humans were just fascinated with mechs. The yellow mech loved the attention! It filled that loneliness within him for a while. A loneliness he tried so desperately to hide from the other mechs. For he was the youngest one on Earth… And now he was at that darned awkward stage where he was constantly fascinated with bonding, but had no freagin' idea how to approach another mech about it!

Yes, his spark was now mature enough to bond. But he had no experience.. No mech that he was THAT close to.. That little peeping tom thing he'd pulled with the two humans had only made him that much more fixated on the entire bonding thing! Now he just couldn't get it out of his meta.. Bumblebee then brought the images back into his meta. Those images of what Bluestreak had been doing to Jazz. He felt a strange fluttering sensation in his primary core. A strange set of electrical impulses went through his sensory nets. Shuddering slightly, he brought himself back into reality.

"You ok Bee?" Spike asked as he felt the car shudder slightly.

"Um ya, just hit a rough spot on the pavement," the mech stammered. He didn't want to admit what he was really thinking.. What was really happening… It was too freagin' embarrassing!

"Ya, these roads suck don't they?" Spike asked as he took another bite of the burger he'd bought at the last truckstop they'd stopped at. It was a horrible burger, but he was starving…

"Ya they suck," Bee agreed. He relaxed a bit as his friend went back to eating his burger.

How could Bee ever admit that he was a pathetically lonely mech, who just wanted some mech to ask him out? Anyone would be nice. Even grumpy Gears would be nice! Granted, he'd have to say 'no' if it was that mech.. He was desperate – but not that desperate. But frag it! All the other Autobots treated him like their little brother.. Like he was a newly sparked mech that had to be babied…Bumblebee hated it.. How in the heck would he ever get 'laid' as the teens called it – when all the mechs thought he was a youngster?! And Bee desperately wanted to know what it felt like!

But then an idea crossed his meta… Bluestreak was the mech coming along on this trip. He was a big mouth who'd talk about anything and everything. If Bumblebee got the boys to start talking about the attractive human girls they would see, he knew that the conversation could easily go into the gutter if he worked it right. And Bluestreak would eagerly start comparing human sexuality to mech bonduality. Yes, then Bee could jokingly get Blue to discuss how it felt.. How it was done.. How Blue had started dating way back when.. And if ANY mech was an expert on how to talk multiple mechs into bonding with him – it was Bluestreak.

Bumblebee sighed. Bluestreak was a little annoying because he never shut up, but he WAS one of the most attractive of Autobots. That's why he could get 'laid' by almost any mech he wanted to. Heck, he had one of the most 'active' reputations – didn't he? Bumblebee wondered for a second if he could ever convince someone like Blue to bond with him… No, probably not.. Why would Blue even consider bonding with HIM, when he could have any mech he wanted to? No, he and Blue would always be stuck as friends.. Plain and simple..

--

Unseen by the yellow mech and his human passenger, a pair of Seekers flew high overhead… Looking for unwary Autobots.. Looking for some 'fun'..

--

Please review…


	25. fun'

"Fun"

"**Fun"...**

Wheeljack jumped through the air and landed with a thud onto the berth. The thud from his metal aft hitting it reverberated through their 'private bungalow'.

"Darn Ratchet, this is comfortable!" he said as he slammed a flat palm on the thick rubber mats which were secured over the top of the berth.

"We need to get some of these," Wheeljack added a moment later as he stared at the mats with particular interest. Personally, the inventor was curious as to how the creative humans had designed such a comfortable berth. He'd never – NEVER – laid on one this nice. So, rolling off the berth, he was soon on his back, sliding under the metallic bed and looking at how it was constructed. Ratchet merely rolled his optics as his energetic mate half-way disappeared under the berth.

"You do realize what the humans sell those thick rubber mats for don't you?" the medic asked him.

"Nope, but we need to order some as soon as we get back to the Ark," came the muffled reply. Then a few 'oh that's how!" could be heard from under the berth as the mech turned his headlights on and scoped out the humans' construction methods.

Ratchet wandered around the 'mech bungalow'. Apparently, it had been one of the resort's pavilions, but they had enclosed the open area beneath the high roof with thick walls of bamboo.

"They sell those mats over the internet for use in horse trailers," Ratchet explained. His tone showed that he really didn't want to be known as a mech who defragged on mats meant for livestock to excrete on.

"I don't care; it's a fraggin' good idea if you ask me!" Wheeljack said; the sound of metal sliding over cement made the medic cringe as he watched the mech slowly wiggled his way out from under the berth, "And they didn't make it out of metal either. Its solid Oak beams under there!"

Soon, the room was filled with a ripping noise as Wheeljack started peeling the side of the rubber matting off so that he could see how they constructed the platform surface. Ratchet could only sigh in exacerbation; he knew with certainty that he'd come into their quarters one day cycle, and find a new berth constructed like this one. Once Wheeljack got a freagin' idea in his meta – there was no stopping him. So he turned back to his study of the walls of this structure. He needed to figure out how to secure it from mechs trying to catch him unaware, since he knew with certainty that that was exactly what Sideswipe was going to try to do.

"Killer! Check this out Ratchet!" Wheeljack said in renewed excitement; striding over to his distracted bond mate, he grabbed his arm and dragged him over to the side of the berth he'd uncovered, "Look, they've got a layer of one inch plywood, then a layer of this two inch rubber matting, then another layer of the plywood, topped off by two layers of the matting. Absolute genius!" he declared before he plopped himself back on top of the berth, smiling happily at Ratchet, "And it's the MOST comfortable berth you'll ever sit your tailpipes on! Come on – try it!

Glancing one more time at the open door, Ratchet debated if he should close it and lock it. Perhaps Sideswipe was going to get pictures of them bonding on this insane 'berth' and turn it into a screensaver on Teletraan One? Ok, now his thoughts were running along the lines of Red Alert's! So shaking his head slightly, he tried to put his growing paranoia to the back of his processor. He HAD decided to try and enjoy this little vacation that he hadn't paid for – hadn't he?! And here was his bond mate almost begging him to get on this berth with him…

Deciding he was going to do it, Ratchet turned to Wheeljack as a slow smile finally crossed his face. He took a step towards the berth only to suddenly stop; a though had just occurred to him. Turning back to the door, he shut it and secured it with a soft click. Only then did he walk over and sit on the berth. Wheeljack WAS right! It really was the most comfortable berth he'd ever sat his aft on. Maybe he wouldn't get mad when the 'energizer mech' built one of these.

As he relaxed, Wheeljack pulled him down to him. Unlatching his facemask, the inventor set it on the 'night stand'.

"Can you believe we even have a mech sized night stand?" he asked Ratchet. His brilliant blue optics shone brightly, his glee at the entire vacation – so apparent. Everything was so – perfect!

Forcing himself to relax a bit, Ratchet scanned the inside of the bungalow. He'd been so preoccupied with how to secure it from certain red mechs, he hadn't even bothered to observe how the humans had decorated it for them. On the rafters of the converted pavilion, were strings of small multicolored lights. The type he'd seen during what the humans called 'Christmas time'. He knew that when it got dark, the space would be filled with a rather interesting mix of soft light. On the far wall, facing the berth, was the biggest flat screen television set he'd ever laid optics on.

"And we have our own TV as well," he noted.

Wheeljack's optics followed his, "Sloggers! That screen's almost as big as Teletraan One! And it's HD! HD Ratchet!" he jumped up from the berth in glee, going over to the flatscreen where he stared at it in awe.

"You know, it'd be more interesting if you turned the fraggin' thing on," Ratchet chuckled. He grabbed one of the thick rubber mats which had been rolled up and secured with tie down straps. Figuring the resort meant them to be 'mech pillows', he stuffed it behind his head and shoulders, propping himself up so that he could view the TV easily.

"You've got a point," Wheeljack said as he turned back towards the berth. That's when he noticed Ratchet using a 'pillow' to prop himself up with.

"Primus! That's what those are for!?" the inventor exclaimed. He'd been trying to figure out what those rolled up rubber mats were intended for.

Ratchet shrugged, "I think so."

The medic then smiled as his gleeful mate slid back onto the berth next to him, grabbed the other 'pillow' and settled himself. He was beginning to think that perhaps it was worth any embarrassment that Sideswipe had in store for him – to see Wheeljack this happy. Grabbing the remote, he handed it to his mate and just enjoyed watching him as he cheerfully flipped through the channels...

--

"Hey, Thundercracker, looks like one down there! Going up the mountain pass," Skywarp radioed.

Scanning with radar, Thundercracker studied the small yellow car going up the highway. There were few cars on the roads in this region, so if it was an Autobot, he didn't think they'd be bothered by anyone.

"You wanna have some fun?" he snickered.

"You know it," his wing mate snickered back. By his tone, he was thinking along the very same lines.

"I'll jam their radio," the blue Seeker said.

"And I'll teleport down and kick the slogger off the road," Skywarp finished his thought.

--

The human was drifting off to sleep; the soft whine of Bumblebee's tires on the pavement seemed almost a lullaby. Waking himself with a start, he jerked upright.

"Ah, go back to your nap, I'm cool," Bee's voice told him.

Smiling, Spike leaned the seat all the way back, "Man, you're a cool friend to have Bumblebee," he said in a sleepy voice. He'd been forced to wake up early every day this week, and it had just about killed the teen. Knowing that he'd be up half the night hanging out with Daniel, he needed to take a nap – that's for sure. Closing his eyes again, he'd almost drifted off to sleep when…

Suddenly, the car jerked hard to the right and then the feeling of plummeting over the side of the fifty foot drop-off! Spike's eyes flew open in shock as he flung his hands above his head and braced himself against the ceiling.

"What's going on Bee?!" he screamed.

"Decept – Decepticons! They've knocked us …. We're going to…." He didn't finish his statement as he hit the ground below and began to flip down the mountainside. The mech didn't know if he'd survive, but he prayed feverishly that his human friend would. He was stuck in this mode until Spike could get out...

Stuck and totally helpless…

Finally, they stopped at the bottom with a sickening crunch, "You ok Spike?" Bumblebee asked weakly.

Spike groaned, he was battered and bruised. His head hurt like hell, but, at least, the seatbelt had saved him from any serious injuries. He knew he had to get out, though. Bumblebee needed to transform so he could protect them.

Unlatching his seatbelt, Spike tried to open the door, but it was jammed. That seemed the least of their problems when they both heard the sound of sadistic laughter; the Seekers were sliding down after them!

"You've got to get out Spike! I can't transform!" Bumblebee shrieked.

Spike nodded and tried all the doors; they were all jammed. Hating himself for having to do it, he grabbed his hammer and smashed one of Bumblebee's side windows. Kicking out the rest of the glass, he wiggled out and fell on the ground into a collection of glass and dirt.

Just as Bumblebee was transforming, Skywarp appeared. Bending down, he swiftly captured the battered boy in his hand. Lifting him up to his optic level, he snickered evilly, "Well, well Autobot. Looks like you've got a decision to make. Do you save yourself – or save your little pet?"

Bumblebee looked up at the tall Seeker with his gun out and pointed at him, "Spike!" he said in a dread-filled voice as he saw his friend held tightly in the purple Seeker's grasp.

"Don't worry about me! Save yourself!" Spike yelled. Hitting the fingers that surrounded him; he fought as best he could. But it was a wasted effort, for Skywarp felt nothing but an annoying tingle from his punches.

"Drop your weapon Autobot," Skywarp growled.

"And if you cooperate, it'll go faster," Thundercracker cackled as he landed on the other side of Bumblebee. His optics roved over the smaller mech's chassis, making it obvious as to what 'it' was going to be.

"Don't, it'll make it more fun!" Skywarp cackled. His red optics gleamed like fire as he anticipated a 'fun' rape.

Spike looked from Seeker-to-Seeker in horror, even as his yellow mech friend dropped his weapon.

"No Bumblebee! Run! Get out of here!" he screamed. He'd rather die than have to watch his cheerful young friend raped! Pounding on Skywarp's fingers, tears began to stream down his face, "Leave him alone – he's only a youngling! You sick bastards!"

Bumblebee looked up at Spike, the terror bright in his blue optics. Even as Thundercracker forced him to bend over a large boulder, forcing his mouth open… Forcing him to…

Spike couldn't bear to keep watching. Clamping his eyes shut, waves of nausea went over him as he heard Thundercracker joke about what a good job Bee was doing with his glossa. Skywarp merely snickering that he couldn't wait for his turn. Soon, the smack of metal-on-metal started as they started to beat Bumblebee for fun. Even as they forced him to pleasure them…

"I think it's time for this Autobot to have a little lovin'," Thundercracker's voice cut through Spike's sobs. Spike shook his head from side to side as he continued pounding on Skywarp's fingers. His fists and arms so bruised by his continual pounding on the metal skin – which they were already turning blue with bruising, but Spike didn't stop… That was his best friend they were doing this too; his best friend. This was a nightmare! This couldn't be happening.

Before long, he heard Bumblebee's muffled scream and couldn't help but to open his eyes. The tears streaked as heavily down his cheeks as they were down his mech friend's cheeks. Blue optics locked with human eyes, both knowing that the other felt the same terror … Horror… The Seekers hadn't raped him yet, they'd ripped his protective armor off … Thundercracker was slamming his fist… Bile quickly filled Spike's throat as he felt a sharp pain in his own groin in response to what he was being forced to watch … Energon began to pool on the rocky ground… Bumblebee's energon … It didn't take long before Spike threw up his lunch; all he could do now was pray … pray that someone would come… come before…

--

"How long did they leave before us?" Bluestreak asked Daniel.

"Um, about an hour-and-a-half," Daniel answered as he took another sip of his Dr Pepper.

Bluestreak calculated it. He knew the yellow mech tended to drive slightly below the posted speed limit, so if he went – oh – about thirty or forty above it, he should catch up to him about forty miles past the mountain pass.

"You wanna have some fun and catch up?" he asked Daniel.

Daniel's eyes got big.

"Won't the cops catch us and throw us in jail?" he asked. Granted, he was in the passenger seat – but going that fast – he'd still get in big trouble.

"Nah, I know most of them around here – they're cool as long as there's no one else on the road," Bluestreak chuckled.

Tightening up his seatbelt, Daniel tried to relax, "You sure?" he asked the mech. Granted, if anyone could talk their way outt've a ticket – it was Blue.

"Yep, trust me!" Bluestreak chuckled and, with that, he floored it. Hitting one-hundred-and-ten in the blink of an optic!


	26. Tenderness

Tenderness

**Tenderness**

"Mmmmm that was wonderful," Wheeljack murmured as he slowly rebooted his systems. His entire sensory network tingled from the pleasure that Ratchet had given him before he'd overloaded. Sloggers, if he hadn't already fallen for the mech long ago – he'd be fallen for him now!

Ratchet grinned as his reactivated optics heard his mate's compliment. Stretching out on the extremely comfortable berth, he felt a sense of self-satisfaction wash over him. But then a stray thought crossed his meta. Was he now painted in a new color scheme? Had his protective armor that Wheeljack had removed from his chassis – gone missing? His optics blazed with swift activation. He bolted upright, scanning the bungalow and all of its contents with suspicion. No, everything seemed as it was. Then he scanned his chassis. Nope, same color he had been before he overloaded.

With a sigh of relief, the medic laid back down and put his hands behind his helm. Primus, he hated acting like Red Alert all the time – but hadn't Prime warned him?! It wasn't that he thought every mech was after him – just two particular ones. And he did have a good reason to be on guard – right? He wasn't just getting a freagin' paranoid glitch going on in his meta – right?

Wheeljack's optics brightened, "You ok?" he asked him. He'd felt Ratchet move suddenly, but now the mech was calmly lying down next to him as if nothing had happened.

"Um, just a stray electrical pulse from the overload.. Causing my motor sensors to react," Ratchet said, though his expression seemed guarded.

He'd heard of something like that happening to a mech every now-and-then. Generally after a once-in-a-lifetime type of incredible bonding experience. It had been good – but he hadn't thought it was all that. But perhaps it had been for Ratchet? Smiling over at his mate, a self-satisfied feeling washed over him.. Wheeljack had never realized that HE was that darned good! "Guess you need a break before another go-around?" he chuckled.

Ratchet looked at him in surprise. Almost as if he didn't know what he was referring too. Then the light seemed to click back on in his meta. "Um, yes, just to be safe.. Wouldn't want to chance a stray pulse again," he replied.

Primus! Wheeljack must've been beyond good to have frazzled the medic so terribly. A slag eating grin passed over his face. He couldn't wait… Couldn't wait to get his hands on the mech again! If Ratchet thought THAT was good – just wait! But the inventor forced his engines to cool off a bit. Ratchet needed some time to recover. Perhaps they could drive the beach? "You want to go driving?" he asked.

"Driving? It's in the middle of the night! Where would we drive to?" Ratchet asked sarcastically.

Wheeljack shrugged, "just down the beach. You know, like a romantic drive or something."

Ratchet narrowed his optics. His darned whimsical mate, always wanting to do the most illogical things in the name of 'romance'! He was about to say no, but then an idea passed through his meta. Perhaps he could scan with all his sensors while they did this 'romantic' drive? Then he'd spot those darned twins before they could sneak up on him! Yes, this seemed like a good idea. Smiling warmly at his mate, he nodded his agreement.

He couldn't believe that Ratchet said yes! Wow! This was truly the best weekend of his entire life! Ratchet seemed willing to do anything he asked – even if it wasn't logical. Standing up, he offered his hand to the ambulance. And hand-in-hand they strolled out into the moonlit night…..

--

Daniel was starting to get used to the high speed. At first, he'd felt the jittery butterflies of anxiety wash over him. But then his youthful excitement took over. He and Bluestreak started joking and yelling in glee as they flew down the deserted highway at breakneck speeds. Not a care in the world other than catching up to their two friends.

Bluestreak downshifted as he hit the section of highway in front of the mountains. His engines purred smoothly as he seemed to climb the grade with ease. His vocalizer not pausing as he continued to joke with Daniel…

Suddenly, Bluestreak slammed on the brakes, spinning slightly. He threw his door open as he did so, throwing Daniel out of him. Before the boy even hit the pavement, Bluestreak had transformed; his weapon in his hand. His audios peeled for the sound he knew he'd heard.

"What the-?" Daniel groaned as he staggered to his feet.

"Shhhh," Bluestreak cut him off, putting a finger over his lips. Reaching into his interior with his free hand, he grabbed the human laser rifle he carried. Without thinking, he tossed it to Daniel.

Leaping forward, the teen grabbed the rifle before it hit the ground. Gulping, he looked down on it. Before he'd turned sixteen, he'd only ever touched a gun in order to put an injured animal out of its misery. Since then, he had gone hunting on occasion with his English friends. But he'd still never really shot at anything other than target practice beforehand. Looking up at the back of the wary Autobot, he knew there must be Decepticons around. And the peace-loving Amish youth might be caught in the middle.

What would his father say?! It wasn't the Amish way to purposely hurt any other human – or alien for that matter. But what if his life was on the line? What if his friend's life was on the line? Would God forgive him for firing at a con? Conflicting emotions went over the boy… But then he heard the faint screams for help.. Recognized the voice as Spike's.. Daniel felt hate for the first time in his life. True hate for the Decepticons who'd attack an unarmed human.. He had to protect his friend! He'd face God's judgment later..

"Sloggers! The freagin' pieces of slag!" Bluestreak mumbled under his breath. Lying down on his belly, he wiggled across the pavement and peaked over the side. One hundred feet down the steep slope, there were two Seekers – and their two friends.

Daniel slid next to him, more than understanding exactly what was happening. He became sick to his stomach as he saw Bumblebee… Poor Bumblebee bent over a boulder.. Turning his head, he couldn't help but throw up..

"You ok Daniel?" Bluestreak whispered. He had to do something, but it was just him against them. Glancing over at the green-faced teen a thought passed over his meta. _But they don't know that!_ But could the boy do it?

"I… I'm fine," Daniel whispered back at he spit a few times to get the last few chunks out. He did feel better now that he'd puked. It was just so sick what they were doing to Bumblebee.

Bluestreak put his free hand on the boy, rubbed his back lightly. "Hey, I know it's tough to watch. But we got to work together to chase them off. Think you can do it?" he whispered.

Daniel nodded and listened to Bluestreak's plan…

--

"No! Leave him alone you bastards!!" Spike screamed hoarsely, beating his bruised hands against the Seeker's fingers..

"You wanna go first?" Thundercracker snickered to Skywarp as he unlatched his codpiece.

Skywarp tossed the boy away and unlatched his own, "Don't mind if I do," he smirked.

Spike hit the ground hard. Trying to stagger to his feet on the loose rock, he looked up at his friend… Bumblebee was held tightly against the boulder.. His torn lips dripping energon slowly to the ground.. His bright blue optics, now dull and beaten.. He sobbed as he heard Skywarp move behind him.. And Spike sobbed with him..

Suddenly, Skywarp shrieked in agony and fell backwards – holding his crotch. The sound of laser fire and the smell of burned wiring filled the mountain air. Letting go of Bumblebee, Thundercracker spun towards the source.. Raising his arm.. Aiming at the Autobot who seemed to be skiing down the mountainside towards them… He didn't have time to fire, as the sharp shooter pegged him in his exposed bonding net. Crumpling in a heap, the blue Seeker groaned in agony.. As Skywarp recovered his senses, he heard the oncoming Autobot yell "I got them Prime!" back towards the road. More laser fire strafed down from below. Sloggers! They had the entire Autobot force coming down on them! In a panic, Skywarp grabbed Thundercracker's wing and teleported away.

Bumblebee slid to the ground sobbing.. Bluestreak ran to him. Surrounded him with his arms, holding the terrified mech tightly to his chassis… "Are you ok Spike?" he asked as his optics fell on the human staggering towards them.

Spike ran towards Bluestreak as fast as he could over the loose shale. Throwing his arms around the mech's leg, he cried in relief. "You.. You got here in time.. They didn't.." he stammered between his sobs.

Knowing exactly what Spike was trying to tell him, Bluestreak 'shhed' him. "I know.. But he's in bad shape. We've got to get somewhere safe to work on him," Bluestreak scanned around him. Knowing that they may have only scared the Seekers off temporarily with their ruse… His internal maps showed an old rail line further down the mountainside from their location. There was a tunnel.. If they could get there, they could stay the night. Motioning for Daniel to slide down, Bluestreak led them down the dangerous slope as he carried Bumblebee over his shoulder.

"There it is!" Daniel said excitedly. Since he wasn't injured, wasn't carrying anything, and was very experienced in hiking through the eastern mountains – he'd turned into their scout.

Bluestreak sighed in relief. Now he had Spike sitting on one shoulder along with Bumblebee's weight across his other shoulder. He needed to rest, to recharge. Staggering after his small friend, he rounded the corner. Low-and-behold, the entrance to an old train tunnel met his weary optics. Bending down, he just barely made it inside as the sound of a Seeker patrol flying high above, filled his audios…

Sitting down, he gently pulled the weakly groaning Bumblebee from his shoulder and cradled him in his lap. "Here bud, I've got our camping energon," he said softly as he pulled one of the cubes out of his storage compartment. Propping the depleted mech against his chest plates, he started to slowly pour some down Bee's throat. The yellow mech cried out weakly as the cube touched his torn lips.. As his damaged bonding circuits scraped the ground.

Spike and Daniel looked at each other. They knew that both Ratchet and Wheeljack were away from base this weekend. And it'd be hard to get Bumblebee back to base without being spotted by the Seekers. They'd been lectured that entire week it seemed, about how to repair this type of damage. Now they were faced with it..

Daniel put his hand on Bumblebee's leg armor, gently rubbing it in empathy for the mech. "Bumblebee, we can repair you," he offered softly.

Bumblebee looked around him with wild optics, his meta not quite into reality. He stared up at Bluestreak, his optics filled with pain.. With fear of letting anyone touch him there.. He wanted to hide from the pain.. Hide from what they'd done to him.. Tears flowed down his face as he cowered in Blue's arms..

"Shhhh, Bumblebee, it's ok.." Bluestreak murmured in his audio, "They're humans.. They're your friends.. You know they won't hurt you.." He tightened his arms around the trembling mech, rocking him slightly back and forth. "I won't leave you buddy.. I'll be right here.. Relax.. Let them repair you.." he whispered.

Bumblebee shifted so that he was sitting between Bluestreak's outstretched legs. Trembling in fear, he spread his legs, even as he turned his head and hid his face in the mech's arms. He yelped weakly as he felt human hands within his damaged nets. But he didn't move, even as tears of shame and pain streamed down his face.

Bluestreak rubbed the back of the yellow mech's helm. He was thankful that the two humans had been trained in these repairs, for he truly understood how Bumblebee felt. Tears filled his optics as Bee's whimpers of fear brought the past back into the forefront of his meta. A past he'd buried deeply. A past he'd wished he could forget – but never could. As Bumblebee's damaged peripherals slowly leaked energon, Bluestreak could feel it as his own.. For once, long ago, when he'd been barely more than a youngling himself – he'd learned what bonding was … Under the harsh hands of Soundwave..

Gulping back his own pain, Bluestreak brought himself back into reality. Bumblebee needed him.. He hadn't been fully raped.. But the mental anguish would still be severe. Primus! If Spike and he had only waited for him to get off shift - … Guilt welled up in him. If only he'd driven faster to catch up! Shaking his head sadly, Bluestreak knew that playing the game of 'what ifs' would get him nowhere. It'd drive him to glitches! Rubbing Bumblebee's shivering chassis; he whispered encouraging words of understanding. As the two boys slowly repaired his shredded nets…

The sun was getting low on the horizon now and Bluestreak knew the boys must be getting tired. "How's it going?" he asked the teens.

Spike was helping as best he could, but his black-and-blue arms hurt like hell! So he was primarily working as an assistant to Daniel. That boy had his arms deep inside Bumblebee's torn circuitry. Sealing off broken lines and reconnecting torn wires. "Think he's got all the energon leaks sealed, but there's still a lot to do on the wiring," Spike reported.

"And we're running out of light," Daniel's exhausted voice added.

"Bumblebee, you need to lie down so that I can look. See if the rest of your repairs can wait 'till morning –ok?" Bluestreak said softly. Though he was no medic, he knew bonding nets better than most – didn't he? He thought to himself with a hint of sarcasm.

"Ok," Bumblebee said in a weak voice. He cringed as Bluestreak slowly slid out from behind him, feeling naked and unprotected as he lay flat on his back. His damage exposed for the world to see.

"Move for a sec," Bluestreak told the boys as he knelt between Bee's legs. Clicking on his headlights, he looked over their work. They'd done a heck-of-a-job considering everything! But Bumblebee still had a lot of small circuit damage. But it was nothing that couldn't wait until morning.. "You've done a good job guys," he said as he leaned back. Looking at the three sets of eyes and optics staring back at him, he realized that he was the unofficial 'leader' right now. Well, they couldn't move Bumblebee until a few more repairs were done. "Guess you kids might as well set your tents up here," he chuckled to break the tension, "At least we don't have anything to worry about from those!" He glanced outside the tunnel entrance, where storms were brewing in the distance.

He left his headlights on until the boys had set up their tents, eaten some dinner, and gone to sleep. Clicking them off, he moved to lie down and make himself comfortable.

"Blue?" he heard Bumblebee whisper.

"Ya?" he responded. The mech's voice sounded fearful. And heck, he couldn't blame him after what he'd been through today.

"Um, you mind, um, defragging next to me tonight?" the yellow mech asked. His embarrassment and fear becoming more obvious in his whisper…

Bluestreak slid over next to him. Lying down, he pulled the trembling mech into his arms. "It's ok to be afraid Bee, I've been there," he whispered in the mech's audio. He knew that it'd make Bumblebee feel a lot better to know that he was far from the only Autobot to go through it. That he'd have a lot of understanding audios to listen to him – if he needed to talk.

"Y – you have?" Bumblebee stammered in disbelief. He snuggled himself tighter to his strong and understanding friend.. Never wanting to leave the safety of his arms…

--

Please review…


	27. Looking for Something

**Looking for Something**

Bluestreak didn't go into defrag. He stayed activated and watchful even as all his friends' shutdown or slept. Looking out the tunnel's entrance at the deep black, star filled sky of the desert landscape, he mused. _Why did the Decepticons find it so slaggin' fun to assault unwary Autobots? _He'd never understood that. And like most Autobots, he'd just gotten used to it as a simple fact of life. If you weren't wary, you'd eventually get assaulted – plain and simple.

But just why did the cons do this? There had to be a reason – right? Maybe if the Autobots could find that reason, they could stop it. But just how in the heck would they go about finding out? Perhaps they could capture one of the bastards and interrogate him mercilessly until he came clean? Bluestreak grinned as he pictured the glee in Sunstreaker's optics if he was given the ok to do whatever he needed to, in order to get a con captive to talk. Yes, that Autobot had a seriously sadistic streak in him when it came with dealing with a con. He was almost a con in that regard. Then Bluestreak began to ponder just why Sunstreaker was so much like a con in that regard.

Bumblebee whimpered and trembled against him. This forced the gray mech out of his silent contemplations. Wrapping his arms protectively around his young friend, he squeezed him and whispered in his audios that everything was ok. Bluestreak was watching over him. There was nothing to fear now. The yellow mech snuggled even tighter against his chassis and slowly relaxed again. As he went back into deep defragmentation, Bluestreak stroked his helm gently.

Anger filled the gray mech, for the one Autobot that didn't deserve to be assaulted was young Bumblebee. He was a peaceful spark, who wouldn't hurt a fly unless one of his friends was in danger. He was like everybody's favorite little brother. And Bluestreak knew without a doubt that every single Autobot would've jumped to his aid without a second thought for their own safety. Yes, Bumblebee was everyone's favorite little bud to hang out with. He was probably the most popular mech on base, because he was such a loyal and fun mech to be friends with.

Cringing slightly, Bluestreak realized he was a touch jealous of Bumblebee. That's one reason he had jumped at the chance of having Daniel for a human buddy. Bumblebee had tons of buddies, both human and mech, and Bluestreak had always secretly wanted the same. He was lonely. Probably one of the loneliest Autobots on base, yet no one – no one would ever know that!

Bluestreak sighed as he continued to stroke the yellow helm pressed to his hood. When Bumblebee's spark was mature, he would have his choice of the single mechs. He'd easily get a bond mate. Bluestreak probably never would. _But it's not my fault! _He whined in his meta. It wasn't his fault that he was programmed to have an overactive meta. Heck, even when he wasn't vocalizing, his freagin' meta wouldn't stop running. Just look at him now! He wasn't able to defrag, because he couldn't stop computing.

Sighing in disgust, Bluestreak shifted into a more comfortable position. He wished his meta would just shut up sometimes. Heck, it annoyed him as much as he knew it annoyed the other Autobots. That's why, unless they wanted some fun bonding action, they avoided hanging out with him.

Sighing in disgust, Bluestreak faced the facts. If Daniel and Spike didn't want to hang out with each other, then Bumblebee wouldn't be forced to hang out with him. That was the only reason the yellow mech was being nice to him. Just like the other mechs – he'd only hang out with him if he was getting something he wanted. But the others got some release, whereas Bee was just making Spike happy.

A few hours had passed now, and Bluestreak silently watched the stars blinking over the desert landscape. The sound of a human waking up caught his attention. Shifting his optics into the infrared range, he turned his head towards where the two teens had set up their little 'campsite'. Silently, he watched as Daniel slid out of his sleeping bag. The teen carefully picked his way towards the tunnel entrance, obviously trying not to wake anyone. When he got to the tunnel entrance, he knelt down and bowed his head.

Thinking it was some kind of weird wake up ritual that the teen was doing, Bluestreak waited patiently for him to finish. Then he could talk to him. But the time dragged on, and the boy still knelt there with his head down. His curiosity became overwhelming, so the mech slowly slid away from Bumblebee and made his way towards the tunnel entrance.

Daniel looked up as he heard the slight whine of moving servos and metal joints. Turning his head towards the sound of muffled mech footsteps, he smiled at his big friend. "I didn't wake you, did I?" he asked in a whisper. He had really needed to pray after everything that had happened yesterday. He had gone against all that the Amish taught when he had fired at the cons. And his guilt had woken him up.

Bluestreak sat down next to his friend. "Nope, I never went into defrag. Meta wouldn't shut up," he whispered in reply. He was glad Daniel was awake. At least now he'd have someone to talk to. "So what'cha doing?" he asked.

"Oh, um, praying," Daniel explained with a shrug.

The mech thought about that. Scanning through his memory files, he couldn't reference it. "So what's 'praying' mean?" he asked.

The boy's eyes got bigger in surprise. The alien didn't know what praying was?!? Oh, wait, heck.. They didn't even have religion or anything, so they wouldn't know – would they? So how to explain it? "Um, I'm asking my God for forgiveness. That's what praying is," he explained.

Bluestreak's optic ridges drew together in confusion. "Why do you need to be forgiven? You haven't done anything wrong."

"Well, um, I broke God's laws when I fired at the Decepticons. He might be mad at me. So I'm telling him I'm sorry," Daniel said.

"He'll be mad at you for protecting your friends?" Now Bluestreak was really confused. It didn't make sense.

Daniel nodded. "Um, Amish believe that we shouldn't purposely or accidentally hurt any human. And, well, I think he puts you aliens in there too. So I'm telling him that I'm really sorry that I broke his rule."

Bluestreak considered this for a second or two. He didn't want 'God' to be mad at Daniel, since it was him that had given the boy a gun and told him to fire at the cons. So he was the one at fault – wasn't he? "Um, so God hears you this way? How?" he asked.

"Well, you think really, really hard as you pray. That's how he hears you," Daniel informed him.

"So, you like get on your knees when you're thinking hard? Why? Wouldn't he hear you if you're standing up too?" Bluestreak asked. It made perfect sense didn't it? This guy could hear your thoughts no matter how your chassis was positioned. So why was Daniel kneeling?

"Oh that? Well, it's to show your subservience and respect to his authority. That's why you kneel."

Oh, guess that made sense. And Bluestreak really needed to get this God guy to understand that it was his fault – not Daniel's. So, shifting his chassis, he got up on his knees and bowed his head. "Like this – right?" he asked Daniel. He wanted to make sure he was doing this praying thing right. Would hate to piss this God guy off even more!

The alien looked hysterical kneeling with his head bowed. Why was he so interested in the entire praying thing? Or was he just copying him? "Um, pretty much. But Blue?" Daniel asked.

"Yah?"

"Why are you doing this?" the teen asked.

"Well, I'm the one who gave you the gun and told you to fire at them. So I figured I'd better tell this God guy that it's me he should be pissed at – not you," Bluestreak said with a shrug.

"You're gonna pray?!?" Daniel asked incredulously.

"Well, why not? Don't you think he'd listen to me too?" Bluestreak asked.

Daniel shrugged as he settled himself back into his praying position. "I guess so. He's supposed to listen to everybody."

"How will I know if he heard me?" Bluestreak whispered.

"Well, you can pray for all sorts of good things. Not material things or anything. But like, your friends and family to be happy and stuff. If he heard you, some of those prayers might come true."

"Oh, ok," Bluestreak replied. So he could pray for more than just God not being pissed at Daniel then? That was good. So bowing his head, he silently thought to this God guy. At first, he explained why Daniel wasn't at fault. Then he asked the guy to forgive him and the boy. When he was done with those two things, he wondered what in the heck he should pray about now? Glancing down at the boy silently praying next to him, he knew he couldn't stop yet. So he thought real hard about what he should ask for next.

His optics fell on Bumblebee's still form. Yes, he should ask this God guy to help Bumblebee get over the assault. So for a few minutes he thought about that real hard. Then he was done again, but Daniel still wasn't. So he started to consider what else he should ask this God guy for. A stray thought hit him. Maybe God could help HIM? Yes, maybe he could help him find a mech that would actually want to hang out with him. Not because they wanted a cheap bonding, or because their human friend wanted too – but because THEY wanted to. Yes, that sounded like a good thing to ask this God guy for. So Bluestreak started thinking real hard on that idea.

---

_Boy it was cold_! Spike thought as his eyes opened. Snuggling deeper into his sleeping bag, he cringed a bit as his bruised arms rubbed against each other. A brightening of the tunnel told him that it was dawn now. Groaning a bit inside, since he really didn't want to wake up, Spike turned on his side. That's when he caught sight of his two friends at the tunnel's entrance. His mouth fell open in total shock! No, he wasn't shocked that Daniel was so obviously praying. Heck, the kid was Amish wasn't he? He was shocked at the sight of the mech knelt down and praying next to the teen. _Holy shit! Daniel's actually teaching them to have religion! _Spike thought in amazement.

Sliding one of his bruised arms out, Spike grabbed his shirt and pants. Trying not to let any of the cold desert morning air into the sleeping bag, he dove down into it and struggled to get his clothes on. It was a tad bit difficult, seeing as how his arms were sore as hell from him beating them against Skywarp's metal skin yesterday. But slowly, he managed to get them on. Poking his head back out of the sleeping bag, he glanced back over at his friends. They were both still kneeling silently with their heads down.

Reaching into his back pocket, he grabbed his cell phone. Although it was a little useless out here since there were no cell towers anywhere close, it still had a camera. And Spike knew that no one – NO ONE – would believe that a Transformer had actually been praying. Unless he got a picture of it! Flipping it open, he angled it for the perfect shot and snapped a digital picture.

Bluestreak's sharp audios caught the sound of the phone. Turning his head, his blue optics locked with Spike's. "Cool, you're finally awake," he said with a smile. Not seemingly bothered in the least by Spike snapping that picture.

"Uh, ya," Spike said as he slid out of the sleeping bag. He was a little embarrassed that the mech had caught him in the act, but heck, he couldn't blame him could he?

Bluestreak nodded for him to come over. "Why don't you join us? God's pretty pissed at Daniel, so we need to all tell him that it wasn't his fault," he said.

"You're serious?" Spike asked incredulously. Heck, he didn't even go to church on Easter, much less pray.

"Yep, come on, its kind've fun. You can ask the guy for all sorts of other stuff too!" Bluestreak said with a wink.

Spike eyed him curiously as he walked over. But then he noticed Daniel's shoulders shaking in silent laughter. Grinning, he realized what had happened. Bluestreak was thinking about God and praying in the same way that a young child does. He thought that God just gave you stuff when you asked. But heck, if that was what it took to get a mech to 'pray' – why not?

"Ah, come on Spike. It'd be good for you," Daniel chuckled, his tone showing that he was joking a bit. He knew the English boy wasn't big into religion. Most of them weren't. So it wouldn't bother him if his friend said 'no', in fact, he expected that.

Spike looked from mech to human and back again. He still couldn't believe that Daniel had actually gotten one of them even half-way interested in religion. Maybe it was a good thing? Maybe they'd quit fighting if they started believing in the supernatural? So with a dismissive shrug and nod, he came over and knelt next to Daniel. A swift glance went between them. Daniel completely understood that Spike was only doing this for Bluestreak's sake.

"What's going on?" Bumblebee's voice asked, interrupting their thoughts. He groaned as he tried to sit up, as his unprotected circuits rubbed against the rock.

In a blur, Bluestreak was at his side. "Aw, nothing Bee. Now you just be still and let's finish up your repairs," he said as he gently pushed him down so that he lay flat on his back. "So how you feeling buddy? Any better this morning? We were really worried about you, you know," he jabbered.

Bumblebee couldn't help but grin at his friend. The darned mech never could shut up, could he? But it did make him feel better to know that everyone was worried about him. Reaching up, he put his hand over Blue's mouth and stopped his ceaseless string of questions for a second. "I'm a lot better, thanks to you," he said quietly, his blue optics looking up at Bluestreak in sincerity.

"Nah, any of us would've helped, you know that. We all-" Bluestreak began rambling on again as Bumblebee removed his hand.

The yellow mech shook his head and smiled. "But it was YOU that helped. Why don't you just shut up and say 'you're welcome'?" he demanded.

"Oh, um, you're welcome," Bluestreak said with a shrug.

"And one more thing, Blue?" Bumblebee asked as he locked with those brilliant blue orbs.

"What?"

"You mind hanging out with me all the time for a while. I really don't want to be, um, alone," Bee asked in a slightly pleading voice. He still felt a little tense since the assault yesterday, and he just didn't want to be alone – ever! Bluestreak had told him he understood last night, so Bumblebee hoped he wouldn't mind. "I mean, it might cut into your action a bit… But, um, I hope you don't mind," he stammered with a blush on his face. He knew Bluestreak's 'active' reputation. Heck, he'd even seen him in action hadn't he? And it wasn't like he was asking the mech for anything more than just companionship until he got over his feelings of insecurity.

Bluestreak looked down at the yellow mech in absolute wonder. _Sloggers! God had actually answered one of his prayers! He had a bud to hang out with! _He thought in amazement. He knew the mech was feeling insecure, heck, he'd felt the same way when it had happened to him hadn't he? But Bumblebee could look for comfort and security from any Autobot – and he'd asked him! Patting the yellow mech's shoulder, Bluestreak got a slag-eating smile on his face. "Bud, I'd do anything, ANYTHING, that'd make you feel better!" he said cheerfully.

Bumblebee shifted so that he had his head leaned up against his new sidekick. A sense of safety went through his tense systems as Bluestreak patted him in a comforting fashion on his chest armor. His buddy would keep the cons away, keep him safe. He smiled up at his friend, still amazed that the mech would give up on having those fun bonding 'dates' with the other players, in order to make him feel better. "Thanks Blue," he said softly.

"Well, we need to finish up. You ready?" Daniel asked. He and Spike stood next to the pair of mechs, tool boxes in hand. They both had smiles on their faces, happy that Bumblebee seemed a little more himself today.

Grimacing a bit, Bumblebee shifted and spread his legs. But this time, he stayed relaxed as he felt his human friends' hands begin to work within him. He could handle a human's touch there. But a mech's – no… Snuggling tighter to his protective buddy, he wondered if he'd ever want to feel the touch of a mech now… Ever want to bond.. Looking up at his buddy, he wondered if Bluestreak would teach him how to forget this.. Maybe one-day teach him to - ? Shaking his head a tad, he threw that thought out of his meta. A good looking mech like Bluestreak would never look at him that way. He was just agreeing to hang out with him while he got over the shock of the attack – that's all…

Bluestreak sat there happily stroking his buddy's chest armor while he made some lighthearted conversation with Bee. He had a buddy now! A mech buddy that WANTED him around all the time! Frag, there was a human God that listened and answered a mech's prayers! He couldn't wait to tell the other Autobots about this illogical praying thing. It actually WORKED!

---

The sand kicked up by his tires hit his side panels lightly, but Ratchet didn't even notice. He was busy scanning all around him as he followed along behind Wheeljack. He knew there had to be a pair of Lamborghinis on this island – or at least certain red one. And by Primus! He was going to spot that mech before he was able to set up a prank! He was so distracted that he ran into Wheeljack's aft as the mech suddenly stopped.

"Ouch! Watch where you're going!" Wheeljack exclaimed as he transformed and rubbed his scuffed aft.

Berating himself for not watching where he was going, Ratchet transformed as he apologized to Wheeljack. But he was frustrated. Frustrated that he hadn't caught sight of those damned twins that were out to ruin his weekend getaway. So instead of his normal behavior of insisting to check how much damage had happened, he just turned away from Wheeljack and scanned the darkness of the island's interior.

Wheeljack studied his bond mate. Something was up. Something was distracting the mech horribly. Was it the intensity of the overload? Had Wheeljack's 'talents' shocked some of his circuits that badly? Striding towards the white mech, he put a hand on his shoulder. "You ok Ratchet?" he asked in a concerned tone.

Realizing his distraction over finding the freagin' prankster was beginning to dampen his mate's fun on this stupid 'weekend getaway', Ratchet turned towards him. "I'm.. I'm fine. Now let's see if there's any damage," he said.

"You sure you're ok? That overload didn't damage anything in your meta – did it?" Wheeljack asked. His optics scanned Ratchet intently, looking for any sign of glitches.

Ratchet pushed him towards a retaining wall. "I said I was fine – and I'm fine! Now bend over and let me examine your aft for damage!" he said in a rather perturbed tone of voice. Nodding at the retaining wall, his optics grew hard, a sure sign to another mech not to continue to pester him with questions. Or they'd risk a wrench upside the helm.

Seeing the look in Ratchet's optics, Wheeljack knew it was pointless to continue questioning him. So in resignation, he walked over to the retaining wall and bent over it. Hearing Ratchet click on his headlights, the mech relaxed as he felt his mate's fingers running lightly over his aft. This position always turned the medic on, even though he'd never admit that to his patients. But Wheeljack knew that fact all to well. A slag-eating smile crossed over his lips. Perhaps Ratchet had recovered from the last overload and would be interested in another round?

Only half-way paying attention to his exam of his mate's aft, Ratchet kept a wary optic on his surroundings. He swore that he could almost distinguish the sound of high-performance engines in the distance. But the darned crashing of waves against the shore was masking them. Sighing in disgust, he finished his half-done exam and slapped Wheeljack on his metal rump. "You're fine, let's go," he stated. Without waiting for an answer from Wheeljack, he transformed and headed down the beach.

Briefly, Wheeljack stared after his bond mate, his mouth agape in shock. Ratchet had never – NEVER – not been turned on by that position! Something was wrong with him. Something was very, very wrong. And here they were, a thousand miles from the nearest med bay for the next two day cycles. What was he going to do?!?

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	28. simple Enjoyment

**Simple Enjoyment**

"Now that's a cool one!" Bluestreak said cheerfully as he nodded towards the next car. Sitting on top of a slowly turning platform, surrounded by neon light effects, the new GMC sports car model seemed almost out of a Cybertronian sci-fi flick. Its sleek lines and custom blood red flamed paintjob gleamed like a fantasy straight out of Sunstreaker's meta.

Bumblebee nodded as he walked towards it. "Sunstreaker would just die over that paint job, don't you think?" he asked as he bent down to take a closer look.

Bluestreak snickered, "only if it were in gold tones." He tried to picture Sunstreaker painting his armor to match the GMC's – and there was just no slaggin' way it'd ever happen. The freager was stuck on yellow for some odd reason. But then again, yellow did look darned good on some mechs. Bluestreak thought as he eyed his new 'sidekick's' back armor. Yes, some mechs looked real good in yellow paint.

His shoulders shook with laughter as he agreed with Bluestreak. Turning around, he punched his friend's chest armor in a lighthearted manner. "Hey, some of us just like yellow. You gotta problem with that?" he said, mimicking Sunstreaker all-to-well.

Rolling with laughter, Bluestreak briefly grabbed Bumblebee in a headlock and rubbed his fist against his helm. Letting him loose, him gave him a pat. "YOU look good in yellow, Sunstreaker just THINKS he does!" he snickered. Turning his head, he scanned the crowd for the teens. "Think we lost Spike and Daniel. Guess we should find them?" he said as he turned and began to retrace his steps.

Bumblebee grinned as he followed along behind his friend. Warmth spread through his engine as he smiled happily. For even though Bluestreak was just going to let him hang out with him because of the attack, he'd actually given him a compliment! He'd said he was better looking than Sunstreaker! The yellow mech's rpms shot up slightly as he studied the gray mech's back. For the most 'active' mech to compliment him like that – was the most incredible compliment he'd ever had!

Lost in his thoughts, Bumblebee followed Bluestreak along. Not even noticing the press of humans getting thicker, until Blue stopped. "Crowd's getting thick, I think we should stay here and wait for the boys to find us," the gray mech told him over his shoulder.

Bumblebee nodded and waited patiently next to his friend. Their optics scanned the thick crowd for the sight of their two human friends. But then a strange, creepy sensation began to wash over the yellow mech's sensory nets. The sensation of being trapped.. Of no escape.. He fought the illogical sensations down. He was surrounded by humans, not mechs. He liked humans. They were safe to be around. But the sensations wouldn't go away. They grew in intensity; Striving to overwhelm his logic circuits with emotion. He began to tremble slightly as he fought to stay calm, to stay still.

Bluestreak felt his friend vibrate slightly against him. Pulling his optics from his search of the crowd, he turned them on Bumblebee's face. The mech had a haunted look. Like he wasn't really there… Fear filled Bluestreak, for he knew what that expression meant. It meant that Bee was starting into a memory echo. And if he didn't do something, the yellow mech could panic and possibly hurt a human by accident.

Turning fully, he wrapped his arms around Bumblebee. "It's ok Bee, I'm here. There's no Decepticreeps around. It's ok," he whispered in his audios.

Bumblebee whimpered in fright, his blue optics going wild as the memory echo overwhelmed his active memory. He was fully involved now. _The sound of Seekers coming closer.. They'd seen him… He couldn't move. His feet were stuck in the concrete. 'Bluestreak.. Bluestreak!' He whimpered. He felt his friend's arms around him. But he was trapped. The Seekers had seen him. Climbing Bluestreak in fright, he wanted to hide, to getaway from the concrete grabbing his feet.. _

Letting the yellow mech climb into his arms, Bluestreak knew that was the safest thing for the humans around him. He had to keep the panicked mech secure in his arms. Keep him from accidentally stepping on a human. Slowly and carefully he made his way through the human throng. The trembling mech whimpered in his arms, begging him to hide him from the Seekers.

Getting out of the main building, Bluestreak made his way to the rear parking lot. Finding a shady spot away from parked cars, he set the yellow mech down and cradled him in his arms. Rocking him back-and-forth and whispering in his audios that it was ok. He wrapped his arms tightly around Bee's yellow chassis, wishing that he could take all his anguish, all his fear..

Slowly, Bumblebee calmed down. Relaxing in the warmth of his friend's arms, tears streamed down his face. Shame for his weakness.. Shame that he'd put humans at risk by panicking. "I.. I'm sorry Blue.. I just blacked out.. I heard them.." he sobbed.

"Shhhh, Bee, it happens to all of us after an assault. Nothing to be sorry for.. It's not you're fault," Bluestreak whispered as he continued to rock him comfortingly.

Sniffing back his next round of tears, Bee snuggled tighter against the mech. "R – really?" he stammered.

"Really," Bluestreak stated as a matter-of-fact. Then he went into an hour long explanation of exactly what memory echoes were, how they felt, and how they would eventually go away. In his recitation, he added several examples of mech's that Bee knew, who'd also gone through it. Tough mechs that no one would ever expect to have this kind've problem. By the time he was done, Bee's tears had dried up and he was looking up at Bluestreak in amazement.

"Sunstreaker?" Bumblebee stated in wonder. He'd never ever have thought that Sunstreaker would have ever had memory echoes.

"Yep, he got ambushed once. They didn't bother to rape him though. They just scratched every single piece of his armor and enjoyed his shrieks of dismay," Bluestreak said with a nod. Pulling away from Bumblebee, he sat down on the shaded pavement and locked optics with his friend.

"Sloggers! So it's not for personal pleasure that they do it, huh?" Bumblebee mumbled. He shook his head, confused as to why the cons were so cruel.

"Nope, not all the time. When we found Sunstreaker and brought him back to the base, he was a wreck. It took orbit cycles for him to stop having memory echoes. He'd run through the base screaming that his paint job was ruined. That he was ugly," Bluestreak added. "You know, I don't really like Sunstreaker much, but I even felt sorry for the fragger. It was terrible," he said with a sad sigh.

"Ya, those cons seem to know how to really get to each of us, don't they?" the yellow mech said with a shudder. He wondered how long he'd have to deal with these echoes. At least Bluestreak would take care of him when he blacked out. "Thanks for taking care of me Blue," he added. His optics shone with his thankfulness. If he'd accidentally hurt a human – he could've never lived with himself.

Bluestreak leaned forward and patted him on his shoulder armor. "No biggie little bud. You'd have done the same," he said with a smile. Standing up, he offered his hand to him. "You ready to go back in and find the boys?" he asked.

Grabbing the offered hand, Bee rose to his feet. But he didn't let go. He needed the security of knowing that Blue was next to him. Looking up at Bluestreak, he shifted his feet nervously, hoping that the mech would understand. "Um, is it ok if I just hold your hand 'till we get out of the crowd again?" he asked.

Glancing up at the clear blue sky, Bluestreak wondered just how powerful this God guy was. It was like the guy had seen inside his very meta when he had prayed! He'd always secretly dreamed of walking in public hand-in-hand with a mech. Granted, Bumblebee was just a friend, but his dream was coming true! In just the few hours since he had 'prayed', Daniel's God guy was fulfilling all these fantasies that he'd kept inside him all these vorns. "Sure Bee, anytime you need too. Just grab my hand – ok?" he said with a warm smile.

Absolutely beaming in happiness, Bluestreak strolled back towards the fair ground's buildings. Hand-in-hand with a mech for the very first time in his life…

---

The surf shimmered like a million tiny mirrors covered its churning surface as the red ball of fire slowly rose above the horizon. Wheeljack watched in absolute fascination as the ocean turned from a deep black, to orange/red, to slightly greenish, to blue. "Wow, if I could just come up with some paint that could do that trick!" he mumbled to himself. Visions of a gleeful Sunstreaker filled his meta. Yep, he'd have to work on incorporating that optical illusion into some paint when he got back to base!

He heard movement next to him, the slight sounds of servos and linkages shifting. Glancing next to him, he noticed that Ratchet had lain back onto the tarp they had stretched out over the sand. The mech finally seemed to be relaxing! Silently thanking Primus for the small miracle, Wheeljack turned his optics back to the surf. Perhaps the glitch caused by the extreme overload last night had been minor, and Ratchet's own meta had corrected it? Primus he hoped so! The mech had been acting strange all night. He seemed totally distracted over something, yet he refused to admit it. Why, Wheeljack had no clue. They'd been bond mates for so long that secrets between them were pretty much pointless, since they just knew each other too fraggin' well.

The tarp rustled as Ratchet shifted positions. This caused Wheeljack's optics to stray back to him again. He'd flipped over onto his belly armor, curled his arms together and set his head in them. The inventor's optics roved over his backside. _He knows how much that turns me on! _Wheeljack thought. Perhaps Ratchet was now settled enough for more? Yes, perhaps it'd be a good time to offer to wax and buff the mech?

"You sure have a lot of scuffs, you want me to wax you?" he offered.

Ratchet merely grunted his agreement as he nodded his helm. He was fragged. The constant state of maximum alertness all night had really drained him. Shifting on the tarp, he stretched a bit. The sun's warming rays felt good on his night-cooled armor. Indeed, it would feel good to get a wax.

Wheeljack grinned as he opened a compartment in his lower right arm. Pulling out in can of wax and a soft buffing rag, he kneeled next to his mate. He opened the can and swiped a large amount of the warm wax with his fingers. Carefully, he screwed the lid back on the can and set it aside. Wiping the wax onto Ratchet's back armor, he began the slow circular strokes to spread it evenly. Slowly, he worked his way across Ratchet's entire backside, down his arms, down his legs, and across the back of his helm.

Waiting fifteen minutes, then he picked up the soft buffing rag and started buffing the wax to a high gloss finish. This took a lot of time and patience as he made continuous circular strokes with the soft rag. But he didn't mind the time it took. For it meant he would have his hands all over Ratchet for that much longer. Anytime he could get the workaholic mech to stop and let him do this was a blessing.

Finally done, he tapped the medic's shoulder armor. "Turn over and I'll get your front armor," he offered. But there was no response. Wheeljack arched an optic ridge in confusion. Tapping the mech a little harder, he still got no response. Frowning behind his mask, he bent down to peer at Ratchet's face which was buried in his arms. The medic's optics were dark in deactivation. "Well doesn't that beat it all? You've gone into defrag on me," he sighed unhappily.

Well, now he'd just have to wait until Ratchet rebooted to finish him. And the minimum amount of time he'd have to wait would be three Earth hours. Shifting, he made sure to spread the tarp a little flatter, making sure to wipe any stray sand from its surface. They'd laid it out for the specific purpose of keeping the abrasive sand out of their sensitive joints so that they could enjoy the beach. And so far, it'd worked pretty well.

With a sigh of resignation, Wheeljack lay down on his back and put his hands behind his helm. Well, at least he could enjoy basking in the sun like a human – without the resulting tan of course. And the sound of the surf crashing against the shore was very relaxing…

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	29. Celebrations

Celebrations

"Hey Blaster, we need a jam don't ya think?" Jazz asked in a cheery tone as he wandered up to the communications officer.

Blaster swiveled the seat so that he was looking up at the mech. Cocking his head in curiosity, he wondered just what the mech was talking about. "A rave dude? Why?" he asked.

Jazz grinned, his visor gleaming brighter. "You mean you haven't heard the news man?" he exclaimed.

"What news didn't I peruse?" Blaster asked. Now his curiosity was aroused. He was never the last to hear anything. So just what had he missed?

Leaning forward, Jazz whispered for a few astrominutes in his audio. Blaster's optics got wider and wider, just as his smile stretched from audio-to-audio. "You're being straight?!?" he asked in disbelief after Jazz finished.

"Totally straight," the mech confirmed.

"Oh man, cuz! We've got to get the gig planned!" Blaster exclaimed. Swinging back around to the computer consol, he logged into Google and began a search of local bands and DJs. This had to be the best party that the Autobots had ever seen!

Jazz leaned over his shoulder, conversing with him about the various local artists that the search engine brought up. So engrossed were they in the party planning, that they didn't hear the sound of mechs coming into the main communications room.

"What are you two doing?" Sunstreaker's voice asked. He and Sideswipe strolled up to the two mechs, glancing at the computer screen.

"Planning the party to dwarf ALL parties!" Blaster announced. He clicked to the next page of local artists, glancing at their availability and their gig fees.

The twins looked at each other, bemused. "A party? For what?" Sideswipe queried.

"Oh, Ratchet took Wheeljack on this weekend retreat to pop the question," Jazz explained without even turning his head.

Now the twins were even more confused. "What question?" Sunstreaker asked. He was a tad perturbed that he hadn't heard about all this beforehand. It was a bit of pride for him to always be up on ALL gossip!

"Ratchet wants to get hitched, so he planned this incredible weekend to convince Wheeljack to say yes," Blaster informed them in his best football game announcer voice.

"Hitched? What's that?" Sideswipe asked. Visions of Wheeljack tying the grumpy medic up to a mech hitching post and doing various erotic things to him filled his meta. He'd never thought that Wheeljack was that creative in the area of bonding, but perhaps he was wrong? Eyeing the yellow mech next to him, he wondered just how pissed Sunstreaker would get if he did the same thing? But perhaps it'd be worth the beating he'd receive after the fact.

Jazz snickered, he actually SNICKERED! "Man, that means they're getting married," he said with a smirk. He had seen that look cross Sideswipe's face and knew that the 'hitched' word had caused the pervert to think of all sorts of weird and wild bonding maneuvers. How Sunstreaker put up with it – he'd never know.

"MARRIED!?!" the twins said in unison. Their optics opened wide in complete disbelief. Then they glanced at each other in confusion, for although they'd heard Sparkplug griping about buying clothes to attend the marriages of his friends, neither one really knew just what marriage really was. "Um, what the heck is marriage anyways?" Sideswipe asked.

Leaning forward, Jazz pointed to a local band that he really thought would be perfect for the party they were planning. "Oh, that's just when two mates publicly declare that they're bond mates for the rest of their functioning," he explained in an offhanded way, not even bothering to look at them.

Sunstreaker narrowed his optics as he and Sideswipe exchanged a glance. He knew how much his brother liked to tease the other mechs, which absolutely drove him to glitches! He'd quit counting how many mech's tailpipes he had had to kick in order to 'protect his turf'. Granted, half of the problem was Sideswipe himself. The fragger seemed to dream of being a 'player' like Bluestreak! He'd have to look into this whole 'marriage' thing. Maybe if he forced Sideswipe to publicly declare his fidelity to him – then the other mechs would get the message. But could he convince Sideswipe to do it was the question. For the red Lamborghini was smart enough to see that it'd dramatically limit his future flirtations.

Turning his optics back to what Jazz and Blaster were looking at, Sunstreaker decided he'd help organize this whole party. "Well, I will make sure this party is organized properly," he smirked. "You and Blaster arrange the entertainment, while Sideswipe and I get the supplies!" he stated. Grabbing his twin by the arm, he dragged him out of the room. They needed to purchase the supplies to make it 'festive', and they needed to find one of the mech's who had enough trunk space in order to haul it back from the store…

----

"Hey Ironhide," Sideswipe hollered as he spied the red mech. He and Sunstreaker glanced at each other with a quick nod. The van should have enough space for what they purchased on their little 'party shopping trip'.

Ironhide stopped and turned around. He narrowed his optics as he spotted who had called his name. The little freager had pasted a sign on his aft just a few cycles before, and he still wasn't quite over it. In fact, it might be a good time to kick his aft about it. True, he'd have to kick Sunstreaker's as well – but two against one odds never bothered him much. "What do you want? You piece of slag," he growled.

Sunstreaker's optics narrowed at Ironhide's tone. It was obvious the mech was pissed about something. Probably something his dumb brother had done recently. Shooting a glare at Sideswipe, he silently informed the mech that there was no way he'd back his aft up this time!

"Ah Hide, you ain't still mad over that little sign are you?" Sideswipe chortled. A grin spread over his face, his relaxed attitude showed that he wasn't afraid in the least.

"You little freagin' punk! Why I outta-" Ironhide drawled as he stormed closer to the red Lamborghini, his optics brightening in anger.

Sideswipe chuckled, "Tell ya what, kick my aft AFTER the party – ok?"

This statement stopped the ticked off mech in his tracks. "What party?" he asked. He was always in on any gossip, and he hadn't heard a THING about some party. Was the little freager pulling his tailpipes? If he was, he was going to earn an even WORSE whipping!

"The engagement party," Sideswipe said.

Ironhide narrowed his optics, leveling a suspicious glare at the mech. "What the frag is an Engagement party?" he asked.

"Well, after a mech asks another one 'the big question'. Their friends throw them a party in order to celebrate," the prankster explained.

"Quit vocalizing in slaggin' riddles! What the heck is this 'big question' and why would we all celebrate over a stupid question?!" the van demanded to know.

"Oh, guess you haven't heard then," Sunstreaker said in his normal arrogant tone. He truly LOVED it when he knew something important that the other mechs didn't. It just proved how truly superior he was. "Ratchet took Wheeljack on the getaway so that he could ask him to marry him," he finished.

Ironhide's jaw just about hit the floor. Like Prime, he'd taken Spike and Sparkplug to a couple of these 'weddings' they complained about. So he had a general idea of what the concept was. And Ratchet wanted to get MARRIED!?! Slag! He'd never have even suspected that from the medic! True, the slagger had been monogamous bond mates with Wheeljack for Primus-knows how long. Heck, even he couldn't really remember a time when those two hadn't been bond mates. But they were going to embrace this human idea and publicly ANNOUNCE that they were a couple until they off lined?!?

"You ok Ironhide?" Sideswipe asked with a grin. He wished he had his digital camera on him; the look of total shock on the tough old mech's face was – PRICELESS! He berated himself for not keeping his camera on him at all times. He'd missed a truly perfect 'screensaver' pic!

Clamping his mouth shut with a clang, Ironhide nodded. "Frag, I never thought I'd live to see the day…" he mumbled.

Sideswipe grinned as he and Sunstreaker got on either side of the shocked mech and put their arms over his shoulder armor in a 'brotherly' fashion.

"Yep, neither did we.." Sunstreaker started.

"But we've got to get the party supplies.." Sideswipe smoothly added.

"We've only got until tomorrow night.." not even a beat was missed.

"To make this the best party ever!" the red twin continued.

"But we don't have the trunk space.." Sunstreaker added.

"So, if you're not busy – you wanna come shopping with us?" Sideswipe finished.

Ironhide looked from one to the other. They seemed sincere enough. And if Ratchet was truly going to get married, Ironhide would do anything he could to help the mech. Indeed, he had more 'trunk space' than most mechs, so they could purchase a ton of party supplies. So he nodded his consent.

The three headed for the entrance to the base. A strange spring in their step, their optics bright with happy anticipation… They waltzed right past Hound and Trailblazer as they went.

"Now THAT'S strange," Hound said to his fellow scout. To see Ironhide of all mechs, hanging out with the prankster that always seemed to find him a good target, just didn't seem right.

Trailblazer nodded, "Something's up. Wonder what it is?"

Hound started after them, "Let's find out, shall we?"

----

"Hey guys, whatcha up too?" Hound called out.

The three mechs stopped and turned around.

"Oh, just going on a little shopping trip," Ironhide drawled with a dismissive shrug.

The two scouts glanced at each other, suspicion in their optics. Old Ironhide NEVER went shopping. That fact, coupled with the fact of who he was going with – made it even more suspicious. Now if it'd been a group of the well known 'players' on base, it'd be suspicious but somewhat understandable. But Sunstreaker was notoriously jealous. So there was no way that he was going to 'share' his brother. So obviously, they weren't leaving base with the 'shopping' excuse – for a little bonding fun. So just what WERE they up too?

"Whatcha shopping for?" Trailblazer asked.

"The party tomorrow night," Sunstreaker replied. His tone indicating that they were somehow 'dolts' for not realizing that.

"What party?" Hound queried. Of all the mechs, he and Trailblazer were generally the FIRST to know any good gossip. So he didn't believe in the least little bit that there was going to be 'a party'.

"You don't know?" Sideswipe said with exaggerated optic ridges. He couldn't help but smirk a bit, for this was probably the FIRST time that he and Sunstreaker knew something before the two scouts did.

"Know what?" Hound and Trailblazer said in perfect synch.

"Ah, ol' Ratchet's asking Wheeljack to marry him this weekend. We're getting the stuff for the engagement party we're throwin' them," Ironhide answered. His southern drawl made his words sound almost musical.

Again, Sideswipe berated himself for not having his digital camera on him. For the matching expressions of total disbelief on the two scouts faces were even better than the expression that Ironhide had gotten.

"You're kidding," Hound stammered as he regained some of his composure.

"Nope," Sideswipe answered.

The two scouts stared at each other, and then turned their optics back to the three mechs. "Well, then you're going to need even more hauling capacity than you've got right now. This party's got to be HUGE!" Hound said as he nodded to Trailblazer.

"So, are you two coming along then?" Sunstreaker asked as he studied the two scouts. With them and Ironhide coming along, they could bring enough decorations back to deck out the entire base.

They nodded and fell in behind the three. Walking to the main gates, the five mechs transformed and rolled towards the nearby human city. They had a LOT of shopping to do!

---

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	30. Boundaries

**Boundaries**

"Hey Bumblebee, we've been looking all over for you!" Spike told him as the two teens pushed through the crowd to get to their mech friends.

The two mechs moved slowly through the crowd, Bumblebee almost seeming to be hanging onto Bluestreak's hand for support as they went. His optics seemed a touch wild, but he was under control of himself for now. Glancing down at the two teens, a forced smile crossed his face. "Yah, it's a little – tight in here," he said.

"Tell me about it! If you aliens weren't so tall, we never would've found you!" Daniel chuckled as he was pushed hard by a bigger guy going by him.

Bluestreak noticed his discomfort. Slowly, he kneeled down. "You two wanna get up on my shoulders? Then you can see everything," he offered.

Without a second thought, Daniel clambered up on his leg, holding a hand down to help Spike climb up. Then the two teens climbed up onto his shoulder armor. Bluestreak stood up very slowly, feeling like he had fragile eggs balanced on either shoulder. Once again, it seemed that he'd become responsible for the whole troop; With the humans in their precarious perches on his shoulders - to trembling little Bee who had his hand in a death grip.

Grinning, the gray mech took it all in stride as he slowly made his way towards the exit, dragging Bumblebee behind him. Bending carefully under the lower door, the mech straightened and stretched a little bit as the open air and sunshine hit his sensors. "Well that was fun don't you guys think?" he asked as the teens slid down him.

"Yep, it was a blast! You should've seen the chicks that GM has!" Spike snickered. He and Daniel exchanged smirks about it.

"I don't think they're into human chicks," Daniel teased Spike. Then he got a 'serious' look on his face as he glanced up at the two mechs. "You aren't are you?" he asked.

"Nope, unless they just wanna hang out," Bluestreak replied with a chuckle.

That's when Daniel and Spike noticed that the mechs were holding hands and the yellow mech was staring up at Bluestreak with a strange look in his optics. Daniel's eyebrow arched up as he met Spike's eyes, which held a similar curiosity to the situation. They both knew that Bluestreak was what the Autobots called a 'player', and that Bumblebee was younger and still a 'virgin' to what they did in place of sex. Were their two friends interested in each other or something?

Spike made a slight gagging sound, indicating to Daniel that he was disgusted with that particular thought. But Daniel just shrugged. He'd finally come to the acceptance that these mechs really didn't have true 'sexes' since they didn't reproduce. Though the idea of two 'apparent' males having crushes on each other still gave him a creepy feeling! He just hoped that they did whatever they were going to do – when he was nowhere close by.

"God, I'm beginning to feel like a third wheel," Spike muttered under his breath to Daniel, noting that the other teen nodded in reply.

Bluestreak's keen audios heard the comment. "You don't look like a third wheel. So why do you feel like one?" he asked with innocence in his tone.

Daniel couldn't help it, between Blue's look of total confusion and Spike's blush of embarrassment – he began to laugh. Soon, he was writhing on the ground in shrieks of laughter. Then he felt someone kick him. Looking up, he saw Spike glaring at him. "What'd you do that for?!" he demanded to know as he struggled to his feet.

"You know why," Spike answered. Taking off his new 'GM' baseball cap, he pegged the other teen with it. Soon, both of them had their caps off and were chasing each other around Bluestreak's legs as they tried to get the best of each other.

Sliding his hand out of Bumblebee's, Bluestreak caught the two in a blur of motion. Holding them up by the backs of their shirts, he stared at them in curiosity. "Mind telling us mechs what's so funny?" he asked them.

Daniel looked over at Spike. Who just crossed his arms and shook his head. Sighing, Daniel looked up at Bluestreak, knowing full well that the curious mech wouldn't stop until he'd found out what they were laughing at. "Ok, we were a little surprised to see you two holding hands," Daniel stated. Cocking his head, he locked Blue's optics with them. "We're not going to wake up and you two? Well, you know…" he asked in a serious tone. After all, this was the mech who wasn't afraid to discuss anything in public.

Bumblebee blushed to a deep shade of gray, looked down and started kicking the dirt with his foot. He was obviously embarrassed by what the teens THOUGHT was going on.

On the other hand, Bluestreak began to chuckle as he set the two boys back down. "Oh that? Bee just gets nervous in a crowd, that's all," he explained with a dismissive shrug.

The two teens visibly relaxed. It was bad enough hanging out with young humans who had crushes on each other – but to hang out with two mechs who were a couple? That would be beyond awkward.

The boys didn't notice the crushed look that passed over Bee's face. But Bluestreak did. Leaning over, he tossed an arm over the mech's shoulders and gave him a friendly squeeze. "But we are partners now – aren't we, little buddy?" he chuckled.

Bumblebee's expression brightened as he returned Blue's smile. He remembered last night's promise. Blue would keep him safe!

Keeping his arm over the yellow mech's shoulder armor, Bluestreak nodded toward some street vendors across the parking lot. "You boys hungry?" he asked.

Spike and Daniel grinned as they turned and made for the hamburger carts. The smell of cooking beef made their stomachs growl ever more with each step.

Bumblebee started after them, but Blue held him back for a second. Looking up at his friend in surprise, Bee met those warm blue optics.

Bluestreak smiled. "Don't worry kid. When you're mature, you won't have a problem finding someone to hold hands with," he whispered encouragingly.

The yellow mech blushed. He wanted to shout out that he was old enough! That he wanted Blue to throw him down and do all those crazy things to him – which he'd been doing to Jazz when Bee had spied on them. But his vocalizor seemed to briefly malfunction. He just stood there silent, like a dumb sparkling.

The gray mech patted his shoulder, and then grabbed his hand again and began to drag him in the direction the boys had gone. "But until then, you can hold mine – ok?" his chuckled words drifted back to the yellow mech.

Silently, the yellow mech trotted after him. Berating himself for not being able to say all the things that were in his meta. All those things he wanted to do to that beautiful gray armor he was following. But he couldn't… He just couldn't.. Blue would just laugh at him and make a joke out of it. He could have any mech he wanted.. Did have any mech he wanted. There's no way he'd ever look at a young, inexperienced virgin…

----

"Feel better?" Wheeljack asked as Ratchet began to stir. His optics scanned the medic's face worriedly as the mech slowly turned over, looking for any sign of a glitch.

Ratchet sighed in disgust as he rolled over and met Wheeljack's worried gaze. Those freagin' twins were making him ruin the whole weekend for his bond mate! Putting his hands on his helm, he rubbed it. "I'm just stressed Wheeljack, that's all," he apologized.

Smiling in relief, Wheeljack put an arm over his chest armor. "Need to talk about it?" he offered as he snuggled up against him.

The white mech shook his head as he put an arm over Wheeljack's shoulder armor. "It's nothing really. Nothing at all," he said evasively. Turning his optics to the churning surf he ground his jaws together a bit. There was no way in hell that he was going to admit to Wheeljack that he hadn't planned this weekend! The inventor would be totally crushed!

Wheeljack shifted, and slowly crawled on top of Ratchet. Unlatching his mask with mischief gleaming in his optics, he smiled down at him. Taking his lips, he pressed himself into the warmth of his mate's energy field. Their glossas danced in time with the waves, their engines revving hiring as their passion increased. The soft salt-laden wind tasting oddly sweet as his intakes opened and gulped it in to cool his internal systems. This was what he had been wanting to do ever since he'd found that surprise in his workshop! Just him and Ratchet, with nothing else to do than to be with each other…

Finally, Ratchet pushed him away slightly. Scanning around them, he noticed other beachgoers – all human couples – glancing their way. Many were whispering to each other as they pointed to them. "I think we need to go back to our bungalow if we decide to continue this," he whispered to Wheeljack as he nodded towards the other beachgoers.

Wheeljack glanced around them, his color deepening as he realized that they were now the focus of human attention. "Um, ya, I think you're right," he stammered, the mood now broken by his embarrassment. Hopping up and latching his mask back on in a fluid motion, he held his hand out to Ratchet.

Taking the offered help, Ratchet climbed to his feet and smiled at Wheeljack. "I'm sorry for being so wrapped up in my own meta," he said in an apologetic tone.

Slapping him on the shoulder, the inventor grinned at him. "Ah, it's nothing. After we roll up the tarp, you wanna go to the Harley museum?" he asked.

Ratchet helped him roll up the tarp. "I'll go anywhere you want to," he said with a smile. Kissing Wheeljack lightly on the side of his mask, he winked as he transformed.

Giddy with excitement, Wheeljack stuffed the tarp into one of Ratchet's compartments. "We're going to have so much fun!" he promised as he transformed and led the way…

---

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	31. Fantasy come true

**Fantasy Come True**

"It's beautiful out here don't ya think?" Bluestreak said. Leaning back, he balanced his weight onto his elbows and stared out over the desert landscape. Dampening his optics a bit from the flickering of the dying campfire, he stared up at the stars. Briefly, he considered how much longer they would stay on this planet. How much longer it would be before he roamed the Cosmos again. Honestly, he really liked it here on Earth. As a ground mech he longed for the press of gravity against him, the feel of solidity under his spinning tires. And boy! Did the humans make some killer roads for mechs like him!

The yellow mech sitting beside him pulled his optics off the sleeping forms of their human friends and scanned the darkness. In truth, he was still a bit nervous about being out in the open like this, but with his sidekick next to him he knew he was safe. Bluestreak was the best sharpshooter amongst the Earth-bound Autobots, and his sensitive audios could pick up danger from clicks away. "Guess so," he agreed.

For once, Bluestreak was silent for a long while. His meta seemed to be focused on thoughts far away from where they were. But in reality, his overactive meta was running through all that had happened since that morning. Every little detail that seemed to indicate that Daniel's God had actually listened to him. Maybe it was all just a coincidence, but the mech was really wondering if that was truly possible.

Bumblebee smiled, he really did like the gray mech. He'd always kind've liked him, even though he'd periodically gotten totally sick of the constant banter. Just like everyone else it seemed. But Bluestreak had proven what his spark was made of since the attack yesterday. He had proven that he'd really do anything for a friend. So even though his meta always seemed to be in overdrive, Bumblebee found himself even more attracted to him now.

Thinking back to the day cycle that he and the two boys had been peeping Toms and had watched Bluestreak and the other notorious 'players' having that orgy, Bumblebee felt his engines slightly rev. He brought up the image of what Bluestreak had been doing with Jazz. The flicks of his glossa along various parts of the other mech's chassis… The moans of abandon that Jazz had vocalized as he arched up into Bluestreak's touch.. Bee's core temperature began to rise. Strange sensations began to flicker over his networks.

Bluestreak's sensitive audios picked up the sound of Bee's higher rpms. Glancing next to him, he noticed that the mech was glowing a little warmer in the infrared spectrum. _Was he beginning another Memory Echo? _He thought with a touch of concern. "You ok Bee?" he softly asked.

His shade darkened into a deep blush of embarrassment. "Um, no, I'm ok," he stammered. Driving the erotic images of Bluestreak from his meta, Bumblebee turned his head away from Bluestreak, and pretended to be scanning the landscape.

The gray mech was too experienced and too much of a player to be fooled though. Something was up with his young friend and he was concerned. Bee's energy field was fluctuating wildly, pulsing against his. Reaching over, he put a hand on the yellow shoulder and tried to force Bee to look at him. "No, seriously, if something's wrong you can tell me," he said.

Bee kept his head turned, his optics falling to the ground. He just couldn't bear to look up. To look in those beautiful optics.. All he'd see would be the gray mech's glossa all over Jazz's chassis. The knowledgeable 'player' eliciting moans and screams of pleasure with such ease. The strange tingling within his nets was becoming stronger. His spark leaping at the erotic visions in his meta. But there was no way the attractive mech would be interested in him. He could, did, have any single mech he wanted to for 'fun'. Why would he even consider looking at a young mech who was just coming into spark maturity? A mech who hadn't even had his first real kiss, much less anything else! "It's nothing, really," he stammered.

Something was definitely up with Bumblebee. He'd never not met his optics before! He was almost acting – bashful. Bluestreak's optics widened as he considered the younger mech's actions. His vast experience in the field of eroticism and flirtation helped him to easily put two-and-two together. _The youngling's spark is mature enough, and something he's thinking about is causing arousal! _Bluestreak silently concluded.

Realizing that since he'd agreed to be Bumblebee's sidekick and to protect him from any further assaults from stray Seekers that he'd probably need to be the youngster's confidante. Heck, he could discuss ANY topic couldn't he! And if anyone was an 'expert' in the bonding realm, it was him. Smiling, Bluestreak shifted so that he faced Bumblebee fully. Patting him on his shoulder armor, he chuckled a bit. "You're getting mature, aren't you?" he asked in a soft and understanding tone.

At his words, Bumblebee's blush deepened. It was bad enough that he was starting to think about bonding all the time. But now it appeared that his thoughts were becoming obvious to those around him. Fraggers! Now he was going to have to deal with the same teasing from his fellow Autobots that he'd watched Cliffjumper endure. He couldn't bring himself to say it, so he merely nodded.

Bluestreak saw his nod. In excitement, he put his arm around the trembling mech and gave him a friendly squeeze. "Ah, there's nothing to be ashamed about little Bee. We all go through it," he chuckled.

Bumblebee dared to lift his optics, to meet the gray mech's optics. "But I can't keep my thoughts on work, you know," he stammered.

Squeezing his shoulder in an understanding way, Blue nodded. "Thinking about bonding all the time? Yep, I remember doing the same myself," he chuckled "funny thing is that that problem never quite stopped for me."

"So.. So it's normal to be stuck on it?" Bee whispered in disbelief.

"Yep, totally. That's how you know your spark's mature," he explained. Removing his arm from around Bee's shoulders now that the 'ice' was broken on the awkward topic, Bluestreak crossed his legs and looked at Bee. "I remember when Smokescreen and I were the worse peeping toms that Cybertron had ever seen. We just couldn't get enough. We tried to spy on EVERYONE!" he snickered.

"Tried?" Bumblebee asked. He was secretly glad that Bluestreak had been a peeping tom too. Maybe he'd understand Bee and the boys watching him. Maybe he wouldn't get ticked about it?

Bluestreak was now rolling in quite laughter as he brought up the memory files. "Yep, we tried watching Ironhide and Chromia one time. Big mistake," he snickered.

"Why?" Bee asked. He was now really curious as to what had happened.

"Ironhide spotted us. He and Chromia chased us halfway across Cybertron! And you don't want to know what that femme did to us when they caught us. Femme's are MEAN!" he said with tears of laughter rolling down his face.

"Oh," the yellow mech replied. He'd have to hear that story in full some day cycle.

Suddenly, Bluestreak's laughter ceased and he locked Bee's optics with a strange seriousness in his. "So, have you started peeping yet?" he asked. If the mech was just thinking about it, and not trying to spy on others, his spark might not be completely mature – just almost mature. There was a big difference.

Bumblebee blushed and looked down in shame.

"So you have? Good!" Bluestreak chuckled.

Surprised at the jolly response, Bee dared to look up.

"So who've you spied on? Anything interesting going on? Fetishes?" Bluestreak asked with a conspiratorial tone in his voice. He always loved to hear what other mechs were doing.

"Um," Bumblebee stammered, still not really able to admit that it was Blue himself he had spied on.

"Oh come-on! I won't tell anyone, I promise," Bluestreak whispered, A mischievous gleam in his blue optics.

His optics glued to the ground, Bee knew he'd have to tell the truth. Bluestreak could spot another bullslogger a click away. "Well, um, you," he stammered.

Bluestreak's mouth dropped open in surprise. He had always prided himself on keeping his activities somewhat out-of-sight. But obviously he and the other 'players' had been relatively easy for the yellow mech to not only track – but to spy on as well. It really didn't bother him that the youngster had seen him, just that he and the others hadn't spotted him spying. "Well, got to give you credit, you sure are a sneaky fragger," he chuckled after he got over the initial shock.

"You… You mean you're not mad?!?" Bumblebee stammered in shock as he lifted his optics.

"Why should I be? Heck, we all do at your stage," the gray mech chuckled.

His laidback manner in talking about the subject made Bumblebee relax. He became bolder. Asking the mech a multitude of questions which concerned bonding; questions which he had not dared utter to any mech before. But this was his sidekick. This was his buddy. And heck, Bluestreak just LOVED to talk about any subject! So they discussed it late into the night.

-----

"So, do you have any more questions?" Bluestreak asked him. He glanced over at the yellow mech, a warm smile on his face.

Bumblebee mulled it over. There was one question that had always driven him to glitches. And now that he was 'spark mature' – it was even more pressing. "So why don't you have a bond mate, Blue? I mean, you're one of the best looking mechs around!" he asked.

The mech's mood underwent a swift change. Sadness filled his optics. "Because no one can handle my freagin' overactive meta – that's why!" he said sullenly. Turning his head, he looked over the forlorn landscape. "If I could change my base programming I would. But I can't," his voice was now bitter.

His swift change of mood shocked Bumblebee. Obviously this was a topic that really hurt the gray mech. But it almost sounded like he was – lonely. Yes, lonely! The yellow mech couldn't believe his audios. Here was a mech who could get any of the single mechs to overload with him any time he wanted – and he was actually lonely! "You're lonely?!?' Bee exclaimed in disbelief.

Bluestreak nodded, keeping his optics scanning the landscape. "You'll learn, Bee, you'll learn. You could bond and overload every cycle, but if there's no attachment, no love – it means nothing but physical satisfaction. And that feels so hollow and worthless after a while," he said with a sad sigh.

He stayed silent for a few astrominutes as he mulled over the gray mech's words. So Bluestreak had always secretly longed for an actual relationship? He found no true satisfaction with those gorgeous mechs he overloaded with for fun? Would he.. Would he consider dating Bee? Chewing on his lower lip, Bee tried to build his courage to ask him. He really did like the mech. And now that he'd gotten used to the constant talking, it wasn't that bad. "Um, Blue?" he asked softly.

Looking over at the youngling, Blue realized that he might've heaped too much of his personal disappointments onto the mech. "I'm sorry Bee, I didn't mean to go into all that. You'll be fine. You'll find someone pretty quick," he forced himself to smile warmly. It wasn't Bee's fault that Blue couldn't find a steady relationship.

"But Blue?" Bee said softly. His beautiful blue optics glimmered in the darkness as he locked them with Bluestreak's.

"What?" he replied.

"Well, um, I know I'm not gorgeous and, um, experienced like those other mechs you hang with," Bee said haltingly.

"Don't sell yourself short Bee, you ARE cute. And don't let anyone convince you otherwise!" Bluestreak stated as he cut him off.

Bee shook his head. "It's not that. Um, I was wondering if you'd, um, be interested in dating – me?" his temperature had skyrocketed as he had said that. His nets stretched to the breaking point with his fear of rejection. Of the mech saying no..

Bluestreak's jaw dropped, and he looked at Bee in shock. "You're… You're serious!?!" he stammered in disbelief.

Bumblebee blushed, looking down, he fidgeted nervously. "Uh, ya," he answered. Had he been too bold? Read too much into what Bluestreak had said? Anxiety filled him, but it mixed with a strange glow of excitement. There was a chance – a chance – that the mech would say 'yes'!

The gray mech shifted his chassis, rising up from the ground and curling his legs under him as he moved so close to Bumblebee that the young mech could feel his heat radiating off of him. Putting a finger under Bumblebee's chin, he gently forced the young mech to meet his optics. "You really want to date a player like me?" he asked incredulously.

"Well, um, if you're not going to be a player anymore," Bumblebee said with a hopeful smile on his face. Bluestreak WAS interested in him!! He was! His spark leapt in joy.

"I never wanted to be one in the first place," Blue replied. He cocked his helm, his optics still wide in disbelief. "So it's a deal then little bud?" he almost sounded like he was pleading with Bumblebee to say 'yes'.

Bumblebee beamed in happiness. "Yes – yes it's a deal!" he exclaimed as he dove forward and surrounded the mech with his arms. Pressing his chassis against him, tears of joy rolled down his face as his friend wrapped his arms around his vibrating frame.

They held each other for a long while, neither one quite believing that the other one had said yes. But both feeling the same happiness; the same warmth which rolled through their cores… Slowly, they parted, looking into each other's optics.

Bluestreak ran a hand tenderly along Bumblebee's jawline, still not quite believing that this young mech wanted a possible relationship. He'd seen him with the other players. The orgies of abandon that the single mechs involved themselves in… But yet, he still wanted him. He felt no jealousy for what Bluestreak had been. Yes, HAD been! For if there was even a shot that a mech would eventually want him as bond mate – he'd quit playing the field immediately. Because that's what Bluestreak had always longed for. Someone to simply call his own…

"You're gorgeous Bee," he softly whispered. His engines revved as he looked at the young mech. The starlight glinting off the shiny yellow armor, the innocence in those wonderful optics. He promised himself he'd go slow with this young mech. He didn't care if it took several Earth months before he actually bonded with him. Before he shared his spark with him.. It didn't matter. For he wanted something much deeper than that – he wanted love.

Bumblebee's spark leapt at his words. The gray mech actually thought HE was gorgeous! His rpms shot up, his entire chassis beginning to vibrate. He wanted Blue to throw him down, to do all those things he'd seen him doing to Jazz. The want filled him. His energy field expanding rapidly… "Th.. Thanks. Um, you too," he stammered, unsure as to how he should approach the gray mech with how he was feeling.

Bluestreak easily saw the signs of an aroused, yet inexperienced mech. But he knew it was too soon for that. Ignoring his own excited spark, he smiled at the young mech as he traced his lips. "Calm down Bee. We've got plenty of time ahead of us for that," he whispered softly.

The yellow mech got a downcast look, pouting as he looked at Bluestreak. His engines dropped to idle, and tears filled his optics.

Geeze he looked gorgeous like that! Bluestreak thought as his optics roamed over the pouting mech's chassis. It would be so easy to take him now. He was so willing, so excited. But.. But there was so much he needed to learn first. Many simple steps go through before he was truly ready. "Oh Bee, don't pout. Heck, I've got to teach you how to kiss first – don't I?" Bluestreak said in his most seductive tones.

Bee began to vibrate again as his engine revved. He'd so forgotten all about that! He was so happy that Bluestreak was so experienced in these things. Blue would make sure that everything was perfect! Was totally perfect! Those light fingers tracing his lips sent shivers through his nets. The musty smell of the wax that Bluestreak used filled his olfactory sensors. "Y.. Yes," he whispered as the mech drew him closer.

Sliding his hands behind Bee's helm, Bluestreak brought him close. Their lips touched lightly. Living metal touching living metal… Shooting bolts of electricity through the young mech. Blue pulled back slightly, his optics locking with those excited blue orbs. Then he pressed Bee against him. Their lips firmly together.. Opening his mouth a bit, he teased Bee's closed lips with his glossa. The young mech trembled as he parted his lips. The warm, soft glossa sliding in.. Dancing along his metal alloy teeth.. Toying with his own.. He pressed his chassis against Blue's. Trembling against him as the mech explored his mouth. His energy field pulsing in wild waves..

Bluestreak pulled back from him, his optics soft and warm as he scanned his face. "By the way Bee, you're supposed to kiss me back," he whispered in his seductive tone.

Blushing, Bee looked down in embarrassment. He'd disappointed Blue! Disappointed him! He was so pathetic! But then a finger forced his chin up, forced him to meet those optics.

"I told you that there was a lot I needed to teach you. I'll never get angry over stuff you don't know, Bee. In fact, your inexperience makes you so – hot!" he purred.

"R – Really?" Bumblebee stammered.

"Really," Bluestreak confirmed, a seductive smile crossing his lips.

"So, um, I've got to kiss back?" the young mech asked.

Knowing that the mech had no clue about what that phrase really meant, Bluestreak smiled. "Just copy what I was doing, at the same time," he explained.

Bee smiled nervously. He shook slightly as he put his hands behind Blue's helm and drew their lips together. His eagerness showed, as he thrashed his glossa around inside Blue's mouth.

Bluestreak just laughed inside. And until the sun began to lift its orange head over the edge of the horizon, he taught the young mech how to properly deep kiss.

---

You know what to do… Please review… It helps us improve..


	32. Forever Young

**Forever Young**

"That was great! I didn't realize there were so many modifications that could be done just to improve performance. These humans are so creative!" Wheeljack said with a happy grin behind his mask as he transformed. He walked on the hard packed sand, looking for a good spot for a little Energon picnic.

"Yes, they are creative," Ratchet agreed as he transformed. Tarp in hand, he followed his bond mate across the sand. He had to admit, he did like to follow the inventor. His tail pipes were so nice to observe…. Shaking his head slightly, he reminded himself that they were most likely being set up. Wariness filled his optics again, and silently he scanned around them with all available sensors. Nothing…. Yet…

But he'd catch that little prankster! He would….

"This spot looks good," Wheeljack decided. He helped Ratchet spread out the large tarp. Once that process was done, they settled themselves on top of it.

Ratchet pulled out a couple of energon cubes. At least it had been HIS idea to spend the extra credits and bring along some high-grade! He handed a cube to Wheeljack, enjoying his mate's 'mmm's' of enjoyment.

"Wow, now this is good stuff! How'd you sneak it under Prowl's olfactory sensor?" Wheeljack asked. He lay back, propping himself up on his elbow armor.

_His eyes looked so beautiful as they sparkled,_ Ratchet thought. Without thinking about it, he reached over and gently rubbed the mech's audio panels. Wheeljack was so unique amongst mechs. His creativity… His ingenuity.. Even his very helm, vocalizers and audios were different. And Ratchet loved each and every little difference.

He smiled at the mech. Not wanting to admit that it really hadn't taken much to get Prowl to sell him some of the best stuff. In fact, it almost seemed like the police mech had been trying to thrust the stuff into his hands! Very unusual… Now that he thought about it. He became somewhat worried. Was Prowl starting to glitch? Oh Primus, now THAT would really just be a total pile of rust!

But Ratchet kept his thoughts, and fears, to himself. He shrugged in answer to Wheeljack's question. "I went through Prime," he fibbed.

"Mentioned you thought he was due for an exhaust flush huh?" Wheeljack snickered. Not many Autobots were aware of just how easily the medic could 'work' them when he wanted to. His no-nonsense and rather predictable temperament kept them from ever suspecting that he had any ulterior motives. But Wheeljack knew his tricks. Heck, back when they were youngsters training at the academy – they'd had a heck of a time messing with the other cadets!

"You could say that," Ratchet agreed. He glanced over at his mate as he took another swig of energon, hoping that Wheeljack hadn't noticed his fib. But the mech just smiled happily as he enjoyed the energon and stared at the waves. Ratchet relaxed. Scooting himself a bit, he lay next to Wheeljack, put his hands behind his helm and smiled.

Together, they snuggled as they enjoyed Mother Nature. No war interrupted them.. No emergency repairs of damaged comrades… Just them and Earth's powerful ocean..

Wheeljack sighed as he looked out at the waves. Shifting a bit, he propped his head up against his defragging mate. A mech never got the time just to chill out and think back at the base. No, there were always things to do and Decepticreeps to slag. Frankly, he was tired of it all. He just wanted the war to end. Wanted to be back on Cybertron tinkering in his workshop… He began to reminisce about those times. Those times of innocence.. Of new love...

_..."You busy?" Ratchet asked as he poked his head through the door. So eager was the young medic that he scraped some of his white paint off since he hadn't waited for the door to fully slide open._

_Wheeljack grinned as he turned. Still wiping the smoot off his face from his recent test run; "Nope, why?"_

_Seeing the smoke still filling the workshop, Ratchet's blue optics opened wide in alarm. He darted in. Grabbing Wheeljack by his shoulder plates he frantically checked him over for damage. "I TOLD you not to test anything until I got off shift!" he said in a worry-filled tone. _

_The inventor just chuckled. "So we could both be black. Naw, you look too good to be coated," he replied. He shook his friend's worried hands from his armor. "I'm fine, just need a good scrubbing."_

_A scowl replaced Ratchet's worried frown. He put his hands on his hip armor as he glared at the young inventor. "Compliments won't soften me up this time." He put a finger in Wheeljack's face plate. "What am I going to do if you go and off line yourself with one of these silly gadgets? You need to listen to me! DON'T test one again until I'm here - PERIOD!"_

_"If I waited for you, then I wouldn't get my projects done in time to turn them in on time!" Wheeljack countered. He grabbed another rag, trying to get his optics cleared off enough to regain his depth perception. This particular soot was a pain-in-the-tailpipes to be sure!_

_"But if you manage to blow yourself up trying to DO the project, then does it even matter what grade deduction you get for a late turn-in!" Ratchet snorted. He glanced around his friend's workshop, disgust in his optics for the amount of damage that could have been done to him. Stupid.. Stupid… Stupid…_

_Shaking his head, he pushed by the young medic. "If I worry you so much, then why in the frag did you ask me out in the first place?" he teased. He strode down the corridor, not even waiting for Ratchet. The wash bays were beckoning him._

_The sound of metal feet jogged up behind him just as he reached the first open bay and began to punch in his code. A hand on his shoulder forced him to turn and look. "Because I love your slaggin' tail pipes, that's why!" Ratchet whispered in his audio. Before Wheeljack could say anything in reply, he was pushed up against the wall as Ratchet forcefully took his lips._

_"Ok you two, if we gotta listen to your freagin' moaning and groaning again - we are going to so kick your afts!" A rather annoyed male voice bitched._

_"All the way out of Cybertronian orbit too!" Another male voice added._

_Ratchet snorted in disgust as he pulled away from the young mech he was kissing. "Why don't you two Academy recruits just shut your traps, or I'll make you go to Hook to get repaired after your next 'training accident'," he threatened. He glared at the two Seekers. They were worse than that pair of twins who were always getting damaged through stupidity!_

_Skywarp snickered as he elbowed Thundercracker. But the young blue Seeker hushed him with a whispered 'he'd do it - and I ain't goin' to Hook!' - he then pushed his wing mate into the now open wash bay. The door slammed behind them. _

_"So, wanna mess with the recruits and make them listen to us again?" Wheeljack whispered to his friend. It had become a game between the medics and soldier recruits as of late. A game of who could annoy who faster. And currently, the young medics were winning. Being a young mech in the Academy ruled!_

_A gleam filled Ratchet's optics; he pushed Wheeljack inside their washbay. "Too bad Hook and Scrapper aren't on the other side of them," the young mech chuckled as the door shut behind them. _

_"Just means we'll have to be twice as loud, huh?" Wheeljack grinned. He turned on the water as he soaped up. His friend's hands joined his own on the soot-covered surface. "MMMMM," he moaned as he leaned against the wall with his back armor. Just for fun he began to whack his fists against it at the same time. _

_Thump.... Thump.... Thump.... Thump... Thump -Thump.._

_Ratchet tried to hold back his snickers as he heard the Seeker pair arguing in the next bay. They were bitching to each other about the medics' racket. "How those mechs can manage to fly and not crash into everything is beyond me," he joked as he continued to rinse off Wheeljack's hood._

_Wheeljack grinned, his fists still hitting the wall in an even tempo. "Yep, don't even realize that we AREN'T doing anything do they?" he whispered. Then he screamed out Ratchet's name a few times and increased his fist pounding on the wall adjoining them._

_They came out of their wash bay just about the same time as the two young Seekers. The two glared daggers at them. "Ssstttt, Ratchet, you left your cable out!" Wheeljack whispered just loud enough for the pair to hear him. They averted their optics, and bolted out of the building._

_Ratchet smacked him on his helm. "Why'd you say that I left MINE out!" he snickered with a wink. Just for fun, he smacked his helm a second time – just a little harder. Then a third..._

.. Wheeljack activated his optics just as Ratchet rapped him on his helm again. "What?!?" he stammered, sitting up in surprise.

Ratchet rolled his optics as he stood up. "I was wondering if I was going to have to get one of my wrenches out. And next time turn your vocalizer off!" He gave an exacerbated sigh, tugging at the tarp that Wheeljack was still lying on. "And the THINGS coming out of your mouth..." He left the rest unsaid, since the shocked expressions on some of the human sunbather's faces explained it.

Wheeljack hopped up and hurriedly helped him roll the tarp up. His shade darkened slightly under his mask. He could just imagine the vocalizations he'd been making during his reminiscing. And it was quite embarrassing! But then he thought of something, straightening up, he gave Ratchet a bemused smile. "I remember a time when this wouldn't have embarrassed us in the least."

Fighting with the tarp, the medic snorted. "That's because we were too young to know any better," he huffed.

But Wheeljack's meta was going in high gear. Just WHY was it embarrassing for a full-grown mech to publicly show his affection? Why did it matter when everyone around you KNEW you were a couple?!? He glanced at his hurried mate, his optics filling with youthful mischief. "No, I think the freagin' war took it away from us!"

Ratchet paused and glanced up. "You're wrong. We've grown up and learned to be proper in our timing."

Wheeljack threw down his edge of the tarp. "I disagree. I think we would've been more playful.. More youthful.. If we hadn't been drafted and forced into following 'military protocols' every waking moment!"

"Give it up Wheeljack, what's done is done. We've both been around way too long to waste our time fantasizing about would'ves, should'ves, could'ves." Ratchet sighed, his optics misting over with his sadness. The wastefulness and pointlessness of the war..

Wheeljack decided that talking was pointless! He wanted to remind Ratchet what it had been like when they were young! In a blur of motion, he took off his mask, grabbed Ratchet, and planted a huge kiss on him. The medic struggled a bit, but Wheeljack didn't care. He forced Ratchet to the ground, locking his lips for several minutes before he finally stopped.

"Wheeljack, there's humans around!" Ratchet huffed as he pushed against his mate.

"You know what Ratchet. I don't care who sees us. We used to NOT care!" Wheeljack replied as he bent down again. Roughly, passionately, he commanded Ratchet's glossa. His chassis grinding against him... He felt the unwilling medic finally relax under him... Felt his core temperature rising...

Ratchet gasped as Wheeljack finally let loose of his lips again. His optics now ablaze with desire…. His spark beating frantically against his hood... He bucked his hips against Wheeljack's, but then winced as a twinge of pain struck him. "That was real smart Wheeljack. Now I'm not only aroused, but I've got sand imbedded in my servos!" He pushed his mate off of him and got up. Muttering about the stupidity of the timing of Wheeljack's little tease session….

Wheeljack grinned as he rose to his feet. Grabbing Ratchet's hand, he dragged him towards the surf.

"Mind telling me what type of further embarrassment you are going to put me through today?" Ratchet asked. He cringed as each step made the sand grind into his joints yet deeper.

His mate looked back at him with a grin. "Well, you see, there's a curve to this beach. I figured we'd go in the surf and wash out the sand. Then, when we're out of sight... Well, I've always wanted to interface in the sea.."

The medic sighed in defeat and followed along. After all, this WAS supposed to be Wheeljack's little dream weekend. But he scanned around them with his sensors, just looking for ANY Autobot energy signature. He didn't want to get back to base and see a screen saver of him and Wheeljack romping in the surf...

----

_**Note: **__Sorry I haven't been updating this of late. I've been rather fixated on my Market Commodity story over on my AFF account. But a reader brought this to my attention with a PM. I'll try to get back to it at least once-a-month, ok?_


	33. Coming to Grips

**Coming to Grips**

Daniel woke up first. Like all Amish raised kids, he was used to waking up before dawn to get chores done. With a lazy yawn he stretched out his arms, noticing the chill in the desert air. Shivering, he pulled his arms back into the warmth of the sleeping bag and began to close his eyes again.

That's when he heard an unmistakable sound. The sound of two people as they made out, their murmurs and giggles drifted to him on the chilly early morning breeze. But they weren't people that he heard. The sound of metal sliding against metal told him that. The familiar voices just confirmed it. With a groan, Daniel peaked out of his sleeping bag. He really should've known it would happen. Bluestreak was too much of a player for it not to. And obvious young Bumblebee was getting interested in that aspect of alien life. Daniel just hoped that his buddy wasn't going to break the youngster's heart, or pump, or whatever the aliens had that equated to that part of human physiology.

The sun was just peaking over the horizon, silhouetting the two mechs perfectly. Daniel watched them unabashedly this time. After all, Bluestreak seemed to have no problems discussing the topic. So the teen figured he'd have little issue with him viewing them. This was an important aspect of the alien life. And Daniel was just fascinated by it all. Who better to truly teach him about it – than his 'player' friend?

He grinned as he watched the silhouettes lock lips. Bluestreak obviously taking the lead… Then they'd kiss for a long while. It was similar to humans deep kissing. Eerily similar.. Then they'd part with Bluestreak murmuring words of encouraging instruction about technique to the younger mech. Bumblebee would giggle like a girl and try again..

Daniel tried to keep quiet; to merely observe and learn without interfering with the action. But he couldn't help it. They were too much like a couple of young human teens. It was too funny.. Too terribly funny.. He began to snicker..

Bumblebee's audios caught the sound. Pulling away from Bluestreak's arms, he blushed in embarrassment as he looked behind him. The Amish kid was laughing at him. Laughing at him!

But Bluestreak knew better. He could tell by the tone of Daniel's muffled snickers that the kid wasn't making fun of anyone. And of course it didn't bother the mech at all that he'd been caught. Heck, he'd been caught by the majority of his fellow Autobots at one time or another! "Enjoy the live action?" he snickered.

"He, he, I'm sorry guys. I didn't mean to interrupt or anything. But you realize how much you guys, uh, look like… he, he, he…" Daniel was now gasping for air.

"Look like what?!?" Bumblebee demanded to know. He felt hurt. The teen was laughing at him. He was nothing but a laughing stock!

"Like two humans getting it on!" Daniel snickered. He pulled back the sleeping bag and sat up, trying to catch his breath. He hadn't realized how similar the first stage of mech 'romance' was to human 'romance'. It was a lot different than the final stage that he'd seen with Ratchet and Wheeljack!

"Who's getting it on?" Spike asked in sleepy confusion. Sticking his head out of his sleeping bag, he rubbed his eyes as he yawned.

Bumblebee turned a darker shade and looked down in embarrassment again. He began to draw in the sandy soil that he sat upon. Not able to meet his friend's eyes.

"They are," Daniel snickered. He made a grab for his clothes and dove back under his sleeping bag in order to get dressed without getting cold.

"Who? Uh, you!?!" This woke Spike up in the blink of an eye. He stared at Bumblebee with an expression halfway between shock and repulsion. "But you said yesterday…"

Bee fidgeted uncomfortably, unable to speak to his friend. But then an arm went over his shoulder armor. He looked up into the smiling face plate of his good buddy.

"Ahh, yep, I know what I said. But turns out Bee's mature," Bluestreak told Spike with a big wink.

Spike groaned and pulled the sleeping bag over his head in disgust. "God, now we really are third wheels Daniel!" he muttered. If he'd wanted to deal with this stuff, he'd hang out with humans – not mechs! Suddenly, he felt himself being picked up by big hands. "Hey! Put me down!" he demanded as he poked his head out of the sleeping bag. He found himself staring into the big blue optics of Bluestreak. Who had quite the shit-eating grin on his face plate.

"You two are not 'third wheels' – you're our friends! And you know, if you two started dating, then we could just all go out on double dates," Bluestreak said in an eager tone.

"What the?!? Ewwwww, that's disgusting!" Spike felt like he was going to gag. It was either that, or punch the mech for saying that. Granted, he'd end up with a broken hand and Bluestreak wouldn't feel anything but a tingle. So that wasn't much of an option.

Daniel had just stood up when Bluestreak came up with that idea. Instead of being angry, the open-minded Amish boy began to snicker again. "Man, that's why humans HAVE different sexes. Normal people go out with the opposite sex – not the same sex!" he explained.

"Oh, you do?" Bluestreak asked. The ever-curious mech set Spike back down. "My bad."

"Yah, we like girls and that's it!" Spike huffed. A little bit more than he had intended too. But he wanted his friends to know that – in no uncertain terms – he was straight!

"But what happened to you guys NOT being interested in each other like that?" Daniel asked.

Bumblebee blushed again, looking shyly up at the grey mech. He didn't know quite how to put it.

Bluestreak grinned, not shy in the least. "Because Bee wants me to date him. He actually wants ME!" he exclaimed happily.

Daniel glanced from the shy virgin mech to the player and back again. He had to be straight with his thoughts on all this. His parents had always taught him that. Taught him that reasons must be discussed on a decision… "But Bee knows what kind of player you are." He glanced back at Bluestreak, his eyes critical.

Bee nodded, and with a gulp, met Daniel's eyes. He knew this was the first of many who would question his decision. And the Autobots would probably be even harsher. Bluestreak had quite the reputation. He'd known that. He'd accepted that. And he trusted the mech to keep his word about being faithful to him. "I know. He promised to stop it for me."

"You did?" Spike asked in surprise. He was struggling to put his pants on while he listened in on the conversation. He was still slightly disgusted about the situation of the two mechs 'dating'. But as long as they kept the sex or bonding or whatever, behind closed doors, maybe he could handle it.

Bluestreak swelled up with pride, a big smile on his face plate. "Yep, sure did! So you boys hungry?"

Realizing that they were indeed hungry, the two teens hurriedly broke camp. Throwing their duffle bags into Bluestreak's trunk, they decided to hop in together. Daniel settling himself in the drivers seat and Spike in the passenger seat. Bumblebee transformed and followed along behind his friends.

Spike leaned forward and tapped on Bluestreak's dashboard. "Hey Blue, one thing."

The mech was enjoying the sensation of letting Daniel completely control him, just like he was merely a car. It felt good to have someone he could trust that deeply. "Shoot."

"Just don't make out or anything in front of me, got it?" the teen said.

Daniel snickered. "And you Englishmen call us close minded?" True, he didn't really care for the idea of the two aliens going at it. But to him it was a chance to learn more about them.

"I'm not being close minded. They're both guys, and I don't want to see it!" Spike replied. He couldn't help it. The prospect of seeing two guys all over each other was just – disgusting. That was all.

"We're mechs, not 'guys'," Bluesteak piped up.

"Geese, you are close minded. Listen to yourself Spike." Daniel looked over at him, giving him a shrug. "These aliens aren't really male or female, they can't create offspring. So they can't be gay or straight – can they?"

Spike narrowed his eyes at his friend. Rolling down the window, he stared at the passing scenery. The wind passing over him just as his thoughts were… He was confused. He'd always considered all the Autobots and Decepticons as male. They sounded like men, acted like men – didn't they? But Daniel was right. Maybe they didn't have sexes. But it still bothered him to even think of Bluestreak and Bumblebee lip locked. Much less anything else!

"Spike?" Bluestreak was worried; the teen had been very quiet.

"Leave him alone for a while. He's got to think," Daniel told him with a pat on his steering wheel.

"If it bothers him that much, I'll promise not to do anything like that in front of him," the gray mech offered. He didn't want his human friends to feel bad or anything.

Daniel shrugged. "If he doesn't see you, eventually he'll see some other couple don't you think? No, he's just got to get used to the idea."

"I thought you Amish were supposed to be more against stuff than other humans?" Bluestreak was concerned. He'd expected Daniel to be more put off than Spike. Spike had grown up with them hadn't he? He should be used to mechs by now.

"Popular myth. We always laugh about all that stuff." Reaching forward, Daniel grabbed his drink. "Hey, take the wheel for a bit would you?"

"No problem." Bluestreak assumed control over himself again. But he was still blown away by the differences in the teens reactions to him dating Bumblebee. "So Amish are actually more understanding?"

"Usually, as long as you're not family. We believe that every person makes their own path. If it's to hell, we pray for them. If it's to heaven, we pray for them. We don't say that your way is wrong or right in this world. Just that it's not our way. Our path." Daniel took another sip as he explained. He glanced over at Spike, wondering if the guy could get used to the fact of alien sexuality or not.

"So you're praying for us or something?" Bluestreak asked. Awe seemed to color his tone. After his experience with 'praying' to the kid's god, he believed in the superstition; and was planning to make even more use of it in the future.

"I'm cool with it, ok. Just don't hurt Bee or I'll kick your ass," Spike interrupted. Rolling up Bluestreak's window, he gave the dashboard his most threatening glare.

He considered laughing about the mere thought of the boy 'kicking his ass', but decided against it. Spike was just concerned about Bee that was all. Everyone seemed to be concerned about Bee. What about Blue? What about the lonely mech? But he said nothing. Rare for a talkative mech like himself… But he didn't want to admit his loneliness. It was bad enough to have admitted it to Bumblebee. "Yah, sure thing," he muttered.

----

They decided to get back to Autobot City a little early. The boys were exhausted from the long drives, and the mechs were exhausted since they had both forgone defrag that night. But no one complained in the least as the gigantic mech came into view on the long dusty road.

"Whoa, what in the tar is going on?" Bumblebee mumbled as they passed through the outer checkpoint. There were decorations all over. With 'congratulations' all over the place. He transformed and stood by Bluestreak, gawking at everything.

Jazz waltzed by them, Blaster tight on his pedes. The pair discussing stages and bands and such….

"What's up?" Bluestreak asked. He grabbed Jazz with an outstretched hand.

The mech grinned as he turned. "We are going to have the party to end all parties man!"

"Yah Brother, we gonna get down and paint the town!" Blaster added, waving his hands around for emphasis.

Bumblebee moved closer to Bluestreak, his fingers curling around his friend's. "Will there be dancing?" he asked in a hopeful tone. He'd like to dance with Blue in front of all the single mechs. Make sure that they all knew that he was dating him.

Blaster shrugged with a comical grin. "Sure! After the main couple gets the first, we can all jump in and satiate our thirst!" he quipped.

Jazz's optics caught the joining of hands; he looked up and cocked his head curiously. It was just last week when he'd learned quite a bit from Bluestreak. Things like how to use one's glossa on certain parts of the anatomy and such. Was the player now adding Bumblebee to his play list? Was Bumblebee even mature enough? He figured that he'd do a little 'test' to see what was up. Reaching forward, he slapped Bluestreak on his shoulder armor. "I still need to teach you those dance moves."

Bluestreak grinned at the attractive mech. True; he'd used that excuse to bait the guy into their little group session last week. But he'd never really intended to actually learn to dance. Then he realized what Jazz was really asking. "Tell you what, we'll watch you and Prowl, and figure them out ourselves."

Hmmmm, so he was dating Bumblebee? Jazz mused. One of his optic ridges went up behind his visor. He glanced down at Bumblebee. The youngster was beaming up at Bluestreak, with innocent idolization in his clear blue optics. The kid was love struck. And had really chosen a bad mech to get a crush on in Jazz's opinion! Giving the pair a nod, he removed his hand.

"So who's the main couple?" Spike asked Blaster. He'd never seen the Autobots decorate the place up like this. So something big must be going on!

"Ratchet and Wheeljack, when they get back. We're celebrating history man, the two mechs are planning to get hitched!" Blaster explained, using his best DJ voice.

Ultra Magnus drove by them at about that time, with Optimus Prime right on his tail pipes. Both mechs were pulling flatbed trailers. The sections of the stage chained down. Tracks and Prowl were following along, arguing about where the stage should be set up.

Bluestreak's optics burned with humor. The little rumor he'd started just a few days ago had exploded. Now he was sure he'd see a wedding. Maybe more than one as the other mech pairs followed Ratchet's example.

"Well, gotta a lot of work to do. See ya later in the groove!" Blaster grabbed Jazz's arm and dragged him along.

"I didn't know that Wheeljack was getting married," Daniel pondered. Surely he would've heard him talk about it during all the hours they'd been working together?

"He didn't know either, but Ratchet's gonna pop the question during their vacation." Bluestreak grinned as he pictured the white mech down on his knee armor in front of Wheeljack. With a ring in his hand or something...

Daniel studied his big gray friend as he and Spike followed them to their quarters. Something didn't seem quite right about this situation. The mechs hadn't even seemed to know much about marriage when he'd first arrived. So how was there suddenly going to be a wedding?

----

Bumblebee followed Bluestreak into his quarters. The happy little yellow bug now glued to his friend's tail pipes. He plopped his aft down on Blue's berth, swinging his legs as he looked up with expectant optics. "So what're we gonna do now Blue?" he asked.

The grey mech grinned, he was tired. So tired… He climbed up behind Bumblebee and lay down with a happy sigh. "Defrag."

The pout on Bee's face plate was priceless. He lay down with a huff and crossed his arms. Turning his back to Bluestreak, he huffed a bit more.

Bluestreak couldn't help it; he bit back his chuckle and tapped him on his door wing. "We've got plenty of time for all that. I want to actually date a mech first. Feel me? But I promise we'll do all that."

Bumblebee crossed his arms tighter, fixing to come up with a rebuttal. He didn't want to wait! He opened his mouth when…

The door slammed open, Optimus's large chassis filling it. He stepped in without even asking permission, his blue optics hard as he scanned the two mechs lying together on the berth. "Get up."

Bluestreak stretched and yawned, not bothering to move. "I would, but I'm really tired Prime. Can we talk after I get a good defrag?"

Bumblebee on the other hand, gulped and leapt up. The look in Prime's optics told him that the big mech was in no mood to joke with. "Uh, hi Optimus, how's it been going?" he stammered.

"Don't make me force you up Bluestreak. We both know who'll lose," Optimus growled. He glanced down at the small yellow mech. The youngling so innocent, so eager to please…. If Bluestreak was just using him for a piece of aft, Optimus would have a hard time not kicking his grey diodes from one side of the base to the other. Bumblebee was like a son to him. "Bumblebee, have you two interfaced?" he demanded to know.

"Geese you're nosey today. What's up your exhaust?" Bluestreak asked. He made a show of getting up reeeaaaalll slowly. One thing about Blue, he respected Prime – but he feared no mech. And right now they weren't talking commander to soldier; they were talking mech to mech. So he wasn't in any hurry to 'obey' the pissy diode.

Optimus glowered at the player. But the expression on Bumblebee's face plate at his question, answered it to his satisfaction. They hadn't interfaced. So perhaps he could save his adopted son the spark break of falling for a slut. "You know exactly what's 'up my exhaust' Bluestreak. Let's not beat around the manifold."

The grey mech sat on the edge of his berth. Crossing his legs, he leaned back against the wall and put his hands behind his helm. "What? Did you want to date him too? Jealous that he asked me first?" Bluestreak was loving this. Not only had Daniel's God given him a mech who actually wanted a relationship, but the other mechs were jealous! This was great!

Prime rolled his optics in exacerbation. Mechs weren't his thing and everyone knew that. "No on both counts." His hand fell onto Bumblebee's shoulder armor. "I consider Bumblebee my son, everyone knows that."

The yellow mech looked up at him, his optics filling with happiness. He'd always kind've felt that the big mech considered him as such. But to actually have him say it out loud was another thing entirely!

"So now you're going to play the father figure and threaten me, huh?" Bluestreak chuckled, his optics full of merriment.

Optimus couldn't handle the player's flippant attitude anymore. This was Bumblebee's spark he was playing with! His adopted son's spark he was going to break! Grabbing the grey mech, he slammed him up against the wall. Holding him helplessly there, he brought his face plate so close to Bluestreak's that his battlemask touched the mech's olfactory sensor. "Yes, I'm going to threaten you. We both know that you jump onto any mech's berth who even glances at you. And I don't want you playin' with him, that's final," he growled.

"I'm not playing with him, we're dating," Bluestreak shot back. He'd never had the big mech glaring at him like this. And even though he wasn't exactly afraid, he had no doubts that he'd have his tail pipes dragged from one end of the City to the other.

"Like I'm supposed to really believe that Bluestreak?" Prime's optics brightened, his hydraulic pressure building.

Bumblebee heard the familiar sound - The sound that indicated a mech getting ready for a fight. His engine hitched. Pulling on Prime, he got his small chassis between the angry mech and his boyfriend. "We ARE dating Optimus! And I'm the one who asked him!"

Bluestreak's pedes hit the ground with a thud. His pump pounded. His own hydraulic pressure now at maximum… He didn't want to fight Prime and get his aft kicked, but he would!

"Why the hell did you do that Bumblebee?!? He's the worst player we have on base!" Prime glowered down at the yellow mech, his hands on his hip armor. He couldn't believe the youngster had a crush on the biggest slut in the Autobot ranks!

"Because he promised me! Promised me he'd be faithful!" the little yellow mech replied. His optics were filling with tears. He couldn't believe that Prime was threatening Blue.

"You gave your oath?" Optimus asked Bluestreak, doubt obvious in his tone.

Bluestreak puffed up his chest and looked Prime straight in the optic. "Yes I did," he stated proudly. He curled his arms around the smaller yellow mech who stood in front of him. HIS mech… HIS boyfriend…

Bumblebee grinned up at Optimus, his optics full of trust for the grey mech. The big red mech sighed. He so wanted to rip Bumblebee out of Bluestreak's arms. Save the youngster from the future spark break he would surely experience. But the yellow mech would never believe him. He only had audios and optics for what the player told him. "Well, we'll see Bluestreak. We'll see if you can truly keep your oath."

"I can and I will."

Optimus turned to leave, but as he got to the door he thought of something. Turning his head, he met Bluestreak's optics again. "You know Bumblebee is young and inexperienced. If I hear that you've gone too fast and hurt him – you'll answer to me." With that, he left…..

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_You know what to do…. Please review… It helps us improve!_

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	34. End to the Fun

**End to the fun**

"Can't we just stay here and forget about the war and everything?" Wheeljack pondered as he stared over the moonlit waters.

Ratchet sighed, his spark in full agreement with Wheeljack. But their friends needed them. Friends that would come back again and again, battered and damaged from the mindless war. A war he couldn't see an end to without the total destruction of the Decepticons. "A total waste of mechs," he muttered under his breath.

"Huh?" The inventor didn't even bother to move his optics from the moon.

"I was thinking what a total waste of mechs this war was," Ratchet explained. He leaned back and propped himself up on his elbow servos.

"Yeah, amazing to think we used to all party together back at the academy." Wheeljack couldn't help but grin at the memories flashing through his meta. "Remember when we caught Thundercracker drunk off his afterburners right before graduation?"

The medic's face plate brightened up. "Yep," he grinned.

Snickering, the inventor threw himself backwards with his hands splayed as if he was tied. "Hey guys, let me up!" he whined in a rather poor imitation of the blue Seeker.

With a smirk, Ratchet played along. Climbing on top of the 'struggling' Wheeljack, he straddled him. "Now why should we? You'll just end up crashing again and making us stop what we're doing to repair your aft before the Sarg finds out," he taunted.

"Pllllleeeeeaaaasssseee let me go!" the fake Thundercracker pleaded. Wheeljack couldn't hold back a snicker as he wiggled against his imaginary bonds. This re-enactment was quite fun!

Grinding his codpiece into Wheeljack's, Ratchet continued to play along. Whipping out an Energon cube, he took a long slow sip, making sure to mmmm and ahhh at how tasty it was.

"Let me have some," the acting Seeker begged as he licked his lip components.

"You're over energized enough I'd say," Ratchet taunted.

"But…But.." Wheeljack wiggled under him.

"Thundercracker, if you drink and fly one more time I'm gonna …"

"You're gonna what?" a familiar voice asked.

Jumping off of Wheeljack, Ratchet spun in the sand, his weapon already out and ready to fire. Wheeljack's reaction was equally as immediate. True, they were more medics than warriors, but millennia of conflict had honed both of their battle processors. They scanned the ocean – which was the direction that the familiar voice had come from.

Sure enough, Thundercracker dragged himself through the surf. By his jerky actions and the pain in his voice – he wasn't in exactly in a fully functional condition. "Slags, I'm not here to fight. If I was, I'd be flying don't ya think," he snorted. To be honest, he was quite happy that it was these two particular Autobots he'd had the misfortune of coming across. After two days swimming in the ocean with no radio or radar, he'd swam for the first piece of land he'd spotted. Seeing mechs on the beach, Autobots to be exact, hadn't made his decision any easier. But at least being these particular two – he doubted they'd off line his aft.

"Didn't think swimming was your game," Ratchet taunted, his weapon still leveled at the Decepticon.

Thundercracker fell as he tried to put his weight on his right thruster. His knee servo was shot! Going back down on his hands and knees, he continued his laborious approach to the safety of land. "Yeah, well, got into a little argument." He ignored the guns pointed in his direction as he finally dragged himself out of the surf and onto the wet sand not far from them.

The two Autobots looked at each other and then back at the Seeker. Mech looked horrible! One of his wings was shredded and his right thruster was barely connected at the knee servo. Realizing he was no threat at all, they put their weapons away and approached him. They were just mechs now, and he was heavily damaged.

"Pissed off your bond mate, hmmmm?" Wheeljack teased as he ran his hands over the Seeker's torn wing.

Thundercracker tensed under their hands at first. After all, he was a Decepticon and they were Autobots. But the teasing was on a personal level, reminding him of back when they were young. Back when there was no war. And to be honest, the only reason he was a Decepticon was that Skywarp was a rather rabid one. He didn't believe in the war, he just followed his spark – that's all. Meeting Wheeljack's optics, he nodded. It was pointless to try and hide it. They both knew how violent and jealous the purple Seeker was with him. Not much had changed in that regard since they graduated from the academy so long ago.

"I should hit you in the helm with a wrench for staying with that rust bucket," Ratchet growled as he examined his heavily damaged thruster.

"Wouldn't be the first time," Thundercracker tried to joke. It came out as more of a gasp of pain though.

Ratchet rolled his optics, he'd never understand what Thundercracker saw in that purple painted bastard. "Why don't you just leave him?"

"Yeah, show some intelligence for once," Wheeljack quipped. "Oh wait; it's Thundercracker we're talking about."

"Not much above Grimlock in the intelligence rating," the white medic agreed.

"Frag you. If you two are just going to make cracks at me – maybe I should blow you away," the Seeker grumbled.

Wheeljack rolled in laughter at that one. "Like you have enough Energon left to power up your guns."

Thundercracker frowned, they were right. He was completely helpless and they all knew it. He held his hands together, figuring they'd just go on and arrest him. Then he'd get dragged back to Autobot city, where he'd be held for a while. But at least he'd be properly repaired and fairly well treated there. The Autobots were notorious for their good treatment of prisoners. In fact, there were suspicions that certain Decepticons intentionally got captured – just so they'd have a 'break' from their duties. "Well go ahead and cuff me. Just cut it with the cut downs, I don't want to hear them."

Ratchet patted him on his intake. "First tell us if we gotta worry about your bo coming after you."

With a snort, Thundercracker shook his head. "Fragger tried to off line me. Probably thinks I am now." He was beginning to think it might be a good thing he was 'captured' by the two Autobots after their little spat. Megatron wouldn't be happy at all when he found out that Skywarp had made the capture rather easy. It'd serve the purple Seeker to be at the receiving end of Megatron's 'disciplen' for once.

"Geeze, how'd you piss him off THAT bad?" Wheeljack whistled.

"Just cuff me," he grumbled. He really didn't want to go there.

That's when Ratchet noticed that Thundercracker's codpiece was slightly askew. As if the hinges had been bent… "Cheated on him? That's not like you," he noted.

Thundercracker dropped his offered hands and crossed them over his cockpit. "I didn't," he pouted. Well, at least not willingly. His spark hadn't been into it.

"Sure looks like you did, and you're a horrible liar," Wheeljack said. Boldly, he traced the damaged hinges along the edge of the Seeker's codpiece. Yep, the evidence was obvious to any medic.

Batting the inventor's hands away, the Seeker glared at them. "It's only cheating when you WANTED to interface, so frag you both – and him!"

The two medic's optics softened. "So it's true then," Ratchet solemnly stated.

"We'd always suspected it," Wheeljack nodded.

"It's bad enough you cons attack us like that – but each other too?" The white mech shook his head in disgust.

"Why do you stay with them Thundercracker?" Wheeljack patted his intake with a comforting hand.

Thundercracker struggled to sit up, grimacing in pain as he did so. Glumly, he set his chin on his good knee servo and looked over the ocean waves. He didn't answer the medics. Didn't need to…. He loved Skywarp with every fiber optic cable in his air frame. He had since their days back at the academy. Sure the Seeker was pretty sadistic sometimes, but it didn't happen often, and he knew Skywarp really did love him back… But this recent spat wasn't his fault! He'd just been following orders. But Skywarp swore he'd been ENJOYING Megatron's attentions this time – even though he hadn't. He'd tried to tell Skywarp that, and all he got for it was a laser blast to the thruster.

"So you gonna take me back to Autobot City now – or what?" he grumbled in resignation. Being a prisoner for a while would give him time to think. Time to figure out how to convince Skywarp to take him back…

"Nah, it'll be a while," Wheeljack said with a casual shrug.

"Why?" Thundercracker actually pouted. This wouldn't be the first time he'd seen the inside of an Autobot retention cell – and most likely not the last either. So he knew how comfortable their berths were. There were advantages to being a prisoner every-now-and-then.

"Because we're on leave until tomorrow," Ratchet answered.

"Uggggg, so I have to sit here until then? That sucks." He put his chin back down on his good knee servo.

"Why don't you just radio your boys to pick you up?" The inventor's digits curled around his right intake.

With a roll of his optics, Thundercracker harrumphed. "Don't you think I would've if I could? Not like I enjoy swimming like some kind of freagin' organo-fish."

"And can we safely assume that Skywarp must NOT be coming back to find you?" Ratchet scanned the dark horizon with critical optics. As possessive as the purple Seeker was – he didn't think that was possible.

The Seeker stayed silent, making it obvious that his comment was right on the mark.

Wheeljack rolled his optics and began to work his arms under the Seeker. "You must've REALLY ticked him off this time."

"What are you doing?" Thundercracker demanded to know as the inventor hefted him into his arms.

"Taking you back to our bungalow," Ratchet flatly stated. He turned around, transformed, and opened his rear doors.

"But I thought you weren't going to take me into custody until tomorrow," he objected as Wheeljack shoved him inside.

"Can't ethically leave a patient suffering out on the beach," the ambulance replied.

"An we got a tool box under the berth," Wheeljack added. His optics flashed once as an idea crossed his meta. Thundercracker squirmed as he scanned his air frame with a strange expression in his blue orbs. "An maybe we'll teach you what interface SHOULD be."

The doors slammed closed then, trapping the hapless Seeker within the Autobot ambulance. Since he couldn't do anything else, he tried to relax on the transport table as best he could. Desperately trying to ignore the interface jokes that were now flying between the two medics… He remembered just how mischievous the pair had been back at the academy. No, not like Sideswipe by any means – but they were still full of mischief in their own way.

-----

"Can't very well have you flying off," Wheeljack joked.

Thundercracker pouted as he finally set his full weight down on his right thruster. Sure, he could walk now, but the medics had made sure that his thrusters were off line. "Can't you just claim that you never saw me?" he asked in a hopeful voice. After all, they'd been relaxed and joking about 'old times at the academy' for the last astro hour or so. Maybe they'd just let him go after all? "I'll never tell," he promised.

Ratchet smirked as he put away his tools. "We're too old to believe anything a Decepticon promises," he laughed.

"No, seriously. I won't say a word!"

"Yeah, and how're you gonna explain the repairs? Hmmmm?" Wheeljack teased.

The Seeker looked down, his shade deepening. He hadn't thought of that.

"Just as stupid as always," Ratchet shook his head. How this particular Seeker kept functioning – he hadn't a clue.

"You know, it's funny as hell that we're supposed to be on a romantic retreat – then we bring ourselves back a metal fish we caught in the sea." Wheeljack ran his digits over the edge of the wing he'd just finished repairing.

An automatic shiver went through Thundercracker's air frame. His wings were ultra-sensitive. Every mech knew about a Seeker's wings. Biting down on his lower lip component, he tried to mask his reactions. He was their prisoner now. Had no flight abilities, and no weapon systems either – the medics had deactivated those systems as well.

"So tell us, who'd you cheat with?" Ratchet whispered in his audio, his digits wandering along the edges of the Seeker's cockpit.

Thundercracker staggered backwards, trying to briefly escape their teasing hands. The backs of his peds hit the makeshift berth, causing him to plop down on his tail pipes. Before he could do anything, Ratchet had him pinned. His optics a mere handspan away from his face plate….

Wheeljack pushed hard against one of his wings, forcing him onto his back armor. The inventor then lay down on his wing, rendering him totally helpless to stop them. Stroking the tense Seeker's side armor, he grinned at him. "Yeah, tell us what happened – this time."

Knowing he was trapped, Thundercracker gulped in humiliation. A warrior – caught by two medics who were on a retreat! But at least he was still functioning, right? His prospects were still looking much better than when he was treading water back in the ocean a few astro hours ago…

"You'd better come clean, or I won't just use this wrench on your helm," Ratchet warned. By the expression on his face plate, Thudercracker knew he wasn't playin'.

"Megatron," he admitted, "But I was forced. I didn't enjoy it! I never do! But Skywarp doesn't believe me!" Tears filled his optics then. He no longer saw the Autobot insignia's on the medics' chassis' – he just saw fellow academy students.

"So he does do that with his troops then. Disgusting bastard," Wheeljack muttered as he rubbed the seams along the trapped Seeker's side.

"Needs to have his cable removed if you ask me," Ratchet agreed.

"Why do you mechs put up with that? I mean, there's more of you than him." The inventor reached over and rubbed the tears off of Thundercracker's cheek as he said this. He couldn't stand to see another mech cry – Decepticon or Autobot.

Sniffing back his next round of tears, Thundercracker silently berated himself for showing emotional weakness to the pair. "Pain is part of interface. You learn to enjoy it," he sniffed. He had convinced himself of that a long time ago. Pain was always part of his relationship with Skywarp wasn't it? Pain made a mech tough.. Strong… Powerful…. That was the Decepticon creed.

Ratchet met Wheeljack's optics, their thoughts running along similar lines. They weren't into threesomes as a common occurrence. But here, now, they weren't on duty. They had a chance to show a Decepticon the light. Maybe even change his meta!

"Pain doesn't have to be part of pleasure," Ratchet whispered. He ground his codpiece against Thundercracker's as he took his lips. His digits danced along the Seeker's air frame, sending waves of pure pleasure stimuli racing through his captive, as his glossa commanded his oral cavity.

Wheeljack nipped his intake as his digits also explored the blue armor. A hum coming from his engine indicating his own raised sensory level.

The moon flowed over the island, casting its shadowy light on the land. Under the mask of darkness, a captive Seeker experiences pure pleasure for the first time……

-----

_Note: Hard to keep this fic 'T' rated. But it's kind've a fun game. Hope you enjoyed…_


	35. Return to Base

** Return to base**

"Hey Thundercracker, toss me that crate." Wheeljack caught the crate as it flew through the air, in a smooth movement, he loaded it into Powerglide.

"Come on, climb in, I'll put the handcuffs on you before we get there," Ratchet said while he waved at the open door.

Without a word, the blue mech climbed into the plane and plopped his tail down in a seat. He kept his optics on his thrusters the entire time, still somewhat in shock at how he had begged for more the night before. Had he really done that? How could he?!? But it had felt so good… What they had done to him… He'd never felt like that before… A rush of heat flowed over his systems as he remembered every touch… Every kiss…. Every sensation their hands had caused…

"Boy you guys must have really blown him outt've the sky. Never get 'ol Powerglide with a sucker shot like that!" the cocky plane snickered. "Well Thundercracker, let me show you how to reeeeeaaaaaallllyyy fly!"

"I really hate it when he does this," Wheeljack mumbled as he tightened the seatbelt. The plane was whizzing through the sky in a haphazard manner as he showed off.

"Freager ain't nothin'" Thundercracker muttered under his breath. Even if he had been impressed – he'd never have admitted it. His dislike for Powerglide wasn't really an Autobot-Decepticon thing. He just didn't like him – period. A rather sharp banking maneuver caused his helm to bang against the plane's fuselage. "When I get out of the brig, I'm so gonna shoot you down for that."

"Yeah dream on Decepticreep. You can't even hang with a flyer like me!" Powerglide bragged as he did a loop-de-loop.

"Just ruins the romantic mood, don't ya think," Wheeljack quipped. His arms were now straight up over his helm, his hands flat on the ceiling as he braced his chassis.

Ratchet just shook his head as he listened to the banter of brags and insults going back and forth between the captive Seeker and Powerglide. "Pretty much."

"Oh yeah, forgot to tell you mechs – congratulations!" Powerglide quipped in between the verbal potshots he was taking at Thundercracker. He'd been surprised when the Seeker had followed the medics up to the runway to meet him. In fact, he'd been so surprised that he'd transformed and aimed his gun at him. That's when Ratchet politely informed him that the Seeker's weapon and flight systems were off lined – and he was their prisoner. All Powerglide could say was '_Send 'em out to get laid, and all they do is fish for Seekers' _To be honest, he was a little amazed that the medics were completely unscathed.

Assuming that the plane was congratulating them on the 'capture' of the Seeker, Wheeljack shot Ratchet a wink as he accepted it for both of them.

Thundercracker grumbled and looked out the window. He was tired of Powerglide's insults and bragging. Tired of being a Decepticon in the company of Autobots… They were so freagin' annoyingly tolerant! He watched the clouds roll underneath them. Already longing to feel the mist under his own wings.

A ped thumping down into his lap broke into his thoughts. Pulling his optics from the window, he turned his head and met the amused optics of Ratchet. "What?"

"I've got some scuff marks from last night," the medic replied. He shoved some wax and buffing cloths into the Seeker's unhandcuffed hands.

"What do you expect me to do about that?" Thundercracker demanded to know. Even though it was obvious what the medic intended for him to do. He wasn't going to just follow his orders without being 'forced' to.

Ratchet nodded at his hands. "You know what. Or was that wrench upside the helm last night not enough to knock some common sense into your thick helm?"

"Perhaps he should stick the wrench up something else, hmmm?" Wheeljack snickered from the seat behind them. They'd actually already done that – and Thundercracker had really seemed to have enjoyed it. So it wasn't really a threat per say…

His face plate darkened as he averted his optics. The last thing he needed was for the cocky Autobot airplane to catch wind that he'd actually done something FUN with the mischievous medics. To have Powerglide insult him with that information during a conflict – would make his life a living dump back at the con base… Grinding his dental plates together, he dipped his digits into the wax and began to buff the medic's ped. Silent humiliation was far better than flapping vocalizers.

"Guess you hit him pretty hard," Powerglide snickered. He settled down and quit showing off. His unseen face plate covered in a smirk as he flew the group towards Autobot City. His internal scanners enjoying the view of the Seeker buffing the medic's peds – oh, what a beautiful bit of humiliation……

-------

They landed a little ways from base. Optimus had ordered Powerglide to do this so that the pair would have to drive up to the front gates. Then the engagement party would commence. Powerglide wasn't going to change that plan, even if he had to drag the unexpected prisoner along by his wings!

"Why didn't you just land on the pad?" Ratchet asked. Pulling his peds off of Thundercracker's lap, he cuffed the Seeker's wrists together. Procedure had to be followed, even when he knew darned well that Thundercracker couldn't go anywhere.

"We're on a high security alert, so air space is closed. Guess his gang is looking for him," Powerglide blatantly lied with a nod towards the handcuffed Seeker. It seemed like a good story.

"Thought you said they weren't," Wheeljack commented as he pushed Thundercracker to start walking in front of him.

All the Seeker did was shrug. He hadn't thought they would. Decepticons weren't known for it. But maybe he'd been wrong. Maybe – just maybe – Skywarp had felt really bad after shooting him down and come searching for him? He watched the sky as he walked, hopeful to see the purple shape of his love.

"Geese, you are so pathetically love-struck. Its gonna be the death of you," Ratchet grumbled. He pegged the Seeker on the helm as he walked by him.

"He does love me," Thundercracker shot back as he stumbled after him.

Wheeljack shoved him along. "Maybe we need to use your wrench on him again later. Change his meta about 'ol Skywarp?" he joked.

The blue Seeker clamped his mouth shut and looked down at his thrusters as the two medics laughed about their private joke. He glanced over at Powerglide, who was giving the pair a quizzical look. At least that braggart didn't know about what REALLY had happened the night before. "No, my helm still stings," he muttered.

This caused the medics to roar in laughter, Powerglide joining in now that he THOUGHT he knew what had happened, which was exactly what Thundercracker was hoping would happen. He didn't want anyone to know that his port activated at the mere mention of more wrench usage. Didn't want to admit that he actually hoped the medics would 'examine' him a few more times during his captivity….

------

"Holy scrap iron! They got themselves a Seeker!" Ironhide exclaimed as he scanned the incoming mechs with his long range sensors.

"Are you serious?!?" Bumblebee asked in disbelief. He wiggled in between the larger mechs, trying to get a look at the approaching group.

"Send 'em out to get engaged, and they come back with a new toy," the red van snickered. Transforming, he zoomed out to them. Leaving a trail of dust rising lazily into the dry desert air in his wake….

"Well congratulations ya 'ol son-of-a-motherboard!" he quipped as he transformed and slammed a hand down on Ratchet's armored shoulder.

"It was nothing," the medic replied. He wasn't used to Ironhide congratulating him for anything. In fact, he was more accustomed to the rough-neck cussing him out while he had him chained down to the repair table - than anything else.

"Ah, don't have to be humble 'bout it. Here lemme take care of ol' blue wing here. Ya don't need to be wasting ya time on him on a day cycle like today." Ironhide grabbed the Seeker's handcuffed wrists and began to drag him along. He nodded for Wheeljack to move next to Ratchet. "Ya'll lovebirds need ya're space."

The pair gave each other a bemused look, before holding hands as they walked towards the City.

"Maybe he's getting gliched like Red Alert?" Wheeljack whispered to Ratchet.

Ratchet glanced behind him. The red van was acting unusually happy, not even throwing any derogatory insults Thundercracker's way. Very strange indeed! "I sure hope not. We'd have to get Prime and Ultra Magnus to chain him down if that's the case," he whispered back.

Ironhide winked at Powerglide as they watched the pair in front of them holding hands and whispering sweet nothin's into each others audios. "Ain't that cute," the van whispered to the plane.

"Yeah, when I saw Cracker here, I was afraid he'd gone and ruined it. You know how Decepticreeps are. They ruin everything!" Powerglide whispered back.

"I don't see a ring or anything," Ironhide whispered.

The plane shrugged, "I don't think they make 'em our size."

"Wonder what he gave him then. You're supposed to give him something when you ask him – right?" Ironhide pondered quietly.

"Dunno, got me on that one. They didn't talk much about it, were too busy fussing with the new toy," Powerglide gave Thundercracker a smirk when he said that.

Ironhide glanced back at him, his optics widening a bit. "You don't think???" He glanced at Powerglide.

"Surely not. He'd have built another Dinobot or something – not caught a Seeker. Too much trouble." But the plane was beginning to wonder about it. It seemed really odd. The obvious private jokes about the various 'uses' of wrenches and such. Had Ratchet actually planned this all along?? Planned to catch Thundercracker as some kind of engagement present or something??? The medics had a pretty unusual sense of humor – but still…. A con????

Thundercracker listened silently, still not sure what this was all about and not sure that he wanted to know anyways. All he wanted was the peaceful silence of the detention cell. He could feel it's beckoning…. He had a lot of things to think about nowadays…. Wrenches…. Mischievous medics…. Angry bond mates…. Yep, plenty of things to sort through and keep his meta processor busy for CYCLES!

------

"CONGRATULATIONS!!!!" the Autobots yelled as the two medics walked through the main gates. Scooping them up, the crowd carried them on their backs above their helms. Chanting some weird human song….

The two medics looked around them in total shock as they were carried along. The city streets were over flowing with decorations. Paper signs that had their names on it were everywhere.

"What the slag?" Ratchet mouthed to Wheeljack.

The inventor shrugged. Surely this was all about them 'capturing' Thundercracker. He kind've felt bad, since they hadn't really 'captured' him at all. They'd just happened to sorta find him. But why not enjoy all of the attention for once? Speaking of whom, where was the Seeker and the two Autobots now escorting him? Wheeljack glanced around. They were nowhere to be seen. Ironhide was probably already throwing his blue tailpipes into one of the detention cells right now. Yep, Thundercracker was now watching the door slam shut and lock..

Turning his optics back around, Wheeljack scanned some of the handwritten posters they were going by. One of them caught his optic. "What in the frag did THAT mean?" he mumbled to himself. It had said something about an engagement party. What the slag was an 'engagement party'? Was it a party celebrating the Autobots winning their last engagement with the Decepticons? And just why hadn't they been informed??? They might've missed it!

Well, at least they hadn't missed it. Wheeljack was in the mood to dance. Granted, he wasn't very good at dancing, but he had been taking some lessons from Blaster as of late. So he figured he could pull it off reasonably well. And since Ratchet was in a good mood, he could probably talk him into joining him on the dance floor. He grinned over at his bond mate, his meta full of bliss. Yep, finding Thundercracker had made them remember their youth. It had really helped their relationship!

The crowd stopped in front of a large decorated area, filled with mech sized tables. Guests, both human and mech, wandered around. But then as if they had a silent command, they parted as Wheeljack and Ratchet were set back on their peds.

"Go on, you two are the guests of honor," Ultra Magnus said with a big smile as he prodded them forward.

Wheeljack and Ratchet looked at each other in amazement. All of this over finding a damaged Seeker?!? Wow!!!! Unbelievable!!! Shaking their heads in amazement, they made their way forward to the seats next to the podium. Everyone smacking them on their armor and congratulating them as they went…

Optimus Prime waited until they had sat down before he nodded for the crowd to find their seats. Clearing his vocalizer a few times, he tapped the tiny microphone in front of him to make sure it was working properly… Then he began…

….."My friends, we have gathered here to celebrate a great occasion…."

'_/Geese, all we did was find Thundercracker/' _Wheeljack comm'd to Ratchet.

Ratchet smiled and shrugged, _'/Maybe we should do that more often?/'_

… "For the first time in the history of Cybertron…"

'_/You've got to be kidding me. Surely another pair of medics 'captured' some hapless con/' _Wheeljack silently snorted.

'_/Quit rolling your optics, everyone's staring at you. Maybe they just needed some good news for once? Not some news of Autobots being raped by cons…/' _Ratchet planted a fake smile on his face plate.

… "Two of our finest, of our most honorable, of our most beloved…"

Wheeljack really wanted to roll his optics now; Optimus was laying it on a bit thick. _'/You didn't tell him it was time for his exhaust line cleaning did you?/'_

'_/No, I know better than that. He's worse to track down than Ironhide when he's avoiding me/' _Ratchet was having a hard time keeping his poker face on. He was sure that Prime was buttering him up or something.

'_/Think he broke into our scheduling program?/'_

'_/Gotta be it. Sheesh, now it's gonna take us half a solar cycle to drag him into the bay,/' _Ratchet barely stopped the internal frown from encroaching on his face plate. He hated dragging Prime in.

… "Have decided to blend our culture with those of our human friends…"

'_/Do what?/' _Wheeljack was glad he had a battle mask hiding his face. There's no way he could've hidden his confused frown if he hadn't had one.

Ratchet comm'd back nothing, but his poker face was breaking.

…. "and become leaders to the rest of us mechs in the area of matrimony." Optimus bent down and hugged the pair. "Congratulations on your engagement!" The crowd roared.

At this point, Ratchet exploded. "WHAT IN THE SLAG IS GOING ON!?! MATRIMONY????? ENGAGEMENT?????? WHAT THE FRAG????"

The cheering came to an immediate end. Shocked silence pervaded the party ground. A mech could've heard a pin drop from a mile away…..

Wheeljack stood up, similarly confused as his mate. But because he'd been working closely with Daniel for a while, he knew what those words meant. Were they supposed to have gotten engaged over the weekend???? Was that why Ratchet had been acting so strangely preoccupied??? But why was Ratchet acting so mad now? Why hadn't he asked him? Tears filled the inventor's optics and he ran out of the crowd towards his workshop.

Optimus stared at Ratchet, his hidden mouth opened in total shock. When Wheeljack bolted away in tears, he grabbed Ratchet's shoulder armor before the mech could do likewise. "Didn't you do it?" he asked in a worried voice.

"Do what?!?" Ratchet stared at the shocked faces which surrounded him. What the frag had he been supposed to do??? No one had told him anything! Heck, he hadn't even known he was going on a retreat until the last minute!

"Did Thundercracker interrupt you?" Arcee piped up. It made sense didn't it?

"Ah, I'm sorry bro; we ruined your surprise then." Blaster looked totally glum now as he looked down at his peds.

Prime slapped his hand onto his helm. He should've thought about that! Confirmed it with Ratchet before doing his speech… But they hadn't even thought about the Seeker's capture possibly interrupting all of Ratchet's well thought-out engagement plans. "I'm sorry Ratchet; I didn't realize you hadn't proposed to him yet."

"Proposed??? What the???" Ratchet twirled around, spying the twins he glared at them. Sure that this whole debacle was of their creation. "I'm going to pay you back you pieces of slag," he snarled. Storming off, he headed in the direction that his distraught bond mate had fled in.

-----

Ratchet's meta went into overdrive as he walked towards Wheeljack's workshop. So the twins had planned the whole thing? Had told everyone that he was going to ask Wheeljack to marry him or something…. Just what in the frag WAS marriage anyways? Apparently it was some big deal in human society…He spotted Wheeljack's little assistant jogging towards the workshop ahead of him. And idea formed in his meta…

"Uggghhhh!" The wind left Daniel's lungs in a rush as he was picked up by a large hand from behind.

"Daniel, I need to ask you something," Ratchet said as he brought the boy up to optic-level.

Daniel scooted back on his palm until his back hit his slightly upraised digits. He knew the alien was mad, and he was afraid he was mad at him. After all, he's the one who had taught the mechs what the words: marriage, engagement, matrimony and wedding were all about. "Uh, yes sir?"

"What does marriage really entail?"

The boy gulped, glancing down he got a bit dizzy when he realized just how high up he was. So he was trapped… Willing himself to stay calm, the boy answered him. "It means till death do you part."

"So life long bond mates? Is that what it means?"

"Uh, yeah, something like that. You're like promising to be each other's only mate for life." The boy's muscles were cramping now because he was so tense.

"Thank you," the medic simply said. Putting the boy down, he waved him to leave. "Leave us alone," he ordered.

Daniel breathed a sigh of relief as the white ambulance went out of sight around the next corner. He darted back to the party that was currently not much of a party – but more of a group of concerned mechs talking in low tones.

-------

"Leave me alone," Wheeljack mumbled as the knock came again.

"Come on Jack, let me in," Ratchet called. He'd figured out how to work this. Since everyone assumed he'd planned the whole weekend, and now also assumed that the Seeker's appearance had interrupted his 'plans' – he'd just follow along. It made for a plausible excuse. After all, this whole 'marriage' thing was basically the same thing as the whole bond mate thing – so getting engaged wasn't a big deal to him. They were already bond mates. Who cared if you called it another name.

Wheeljack sniffed, "Leave me alone!" He couldn't believe Ratchet's reaction back there. Couldn't believe that the mech didn't want to marry him! He'd given his very spark to the mech!

Ratchet punched in his override code and stormed in.

"Get out!" Wheeljack threw a wrench at him.

If he hadn't been so focused on what he needed to do, Ratchet might've found it amusing that Wheeljack was using one of his notorious moves – against him. But he didn't notice. Striding up to the inventor, he ducked under another thrown wrench, barely avoiding a rather nasty hit to the helm. Grabbing his mate, he pinned his arms to his sides before he could punch him. "LISTEN TO ME!!!" he bellowed.

"You don't really love me," Wheeljack sobbed.

"Yes I do."

"No you don't. You've just been *sniff*sniff* using me all these cycles!"

"No I haven't."

"Yes you have *sniff*" Wheeljack turned his face plate away from him.

"I'm telling you that I love you damnit!"

The inventor pushed him. "Then why didn't you do it?!? Why'd you act so pissed back there?!? You don't love me! You never did!" He crossed his arms, now in a full pout.

"Primus Wheeljack – don't you see???"

"Of course I see! My optic circuits are 100% functional!"

"No, not that."

"Then what???? That you don't love me???"

Ratchet shook his head in dismay. When Wheeljack got in one of these moods, it was hard to break him out of it. "That I was mad that they ruined my surprise."

"*sniff*sniff* Surprise??? You could've asked me at the Beach!"

The medic gave an exaggerated sigh. "Thundercracker ruined it then," he flat-out lied. He'd get the twins back for this… Exhaust flushes every Earth month for an entire cycle!

"He did? Really?" Wheeljack was blinking back tears now. A good sign that he was coming around….

"Yes, and I was going to do it after we got him in a detention cell. But the rest of the Autobots ruined my surprise." He put some anger in his voice then, making it sound truthful. He was angry, but not over that particular thing.

"So you really *sniff*sniff* want to get married?" Wheeljack uncrossed his arms and wiping the tears from his face plate.

Ratchet got down on his knee armor. He had nothing but the wrench lying down on the floor next to him. A brand new wrench that happened to be his… How it had made its way to Wheeljack's shop was up for conjecture, but it was there none-the-less. He held up the wrench to his mate. "Will you marry me Wheeljack?" he asked as he held it out to him.

Wheeljack took off his battle mask, his tear-streaked face plate now beaming in happiness. "Yes…" he said as he took the wrench he'd 'borrowed' without asking the week before. "Yes I will!"

-----

_Note: this story is now complete. Sorry it took so long. If you want to see what happens with Bluestreak and Bumblebee's relationship – you'll have to visit my AdultFanFiction stories. It went too mature for FanFic – if you know what I mean…. http : // anime . adultfanfiction . net /story .php? no = 600045692_


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